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LIBRARY 

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UNIVERSITY   OF   CALIFORNIA. 

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Received  LX^^^-^^j^  _  /  88(f 

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RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES 


■OF- 


A  RESIDENCE  ABROAD. 


ENGLAND— GUERNSEY. 


•BY- 


J.  L.  PEYTON, 


AUTHOR  OF  "THE  AMERICAN  CRISIS,"  "OVER  THE  ALLEGHANIES  AN1> 
ACROSS  THE  PRAIRIES,"  "HISTORY  OF  AUGUSTA  CO.,VA.,  ETC.,  ETC. 


^Much  have  I  seen  and  known  ;  cities  of  men 
And  manners,  climates,  councils,  governments." 

i  — Tennyuoa. 


STAUNTON,  VIRGINIA  : 

S,  M,  YOST  &  SON,  PUBLISHERS. 

MDCCCLXXXVIII. 


[All  Rights  Reseivcd.] 


V 


jiiM 


IV 


TABLE    OF    CONTENTS: 

CHAPTER  I. 

London  Past  and  Present .. , ..  i —  12 

CHAPTER  II. 

The  Dark  Side  of  London  Life — The  Social  Dregs 12       27 

CHAPTFR    III. 
The  Kew  Gardens  and  Richmond  Park — Ruminations  over  some  of 

John  Bull's  Peculiarities , 28-     39 

CHAPTER.  IV. 
Further  Experiences  of  Richmond — Gypsies — John^  Earl  Russell,  &c.      40 —  4S 

CHAPTER  V. 
Windsor  Castle.  Past  and  Present — George  IV — The  Lawless  Lords 

of  Other  Days— The  Royal  Stables— The  Parks,  &c ...       48-    59 

CHAPTER  VI. 
The  Inauguration  of  the  Second  World's  Fair  in  London — The  Fine 
Art  Department — American  Exhibition — Letter  to  the  "Times" 
New-Made  Friends ,, 59—  71 

CHAPTER  VII. 
Letter  to  the  "Times,"  referred  to  in  Previous  Chapter — Gladstone, 

Bright  &c,    &c .• 72—    76 

'  CHAPTERVIIL 

The    Shaw    Farm   of  Prince.  Albert — English    Agriculture — Stock 
Breeding,  &c.,— Political  Influence  of  the     Landlords — Duke 

of    Somerset , 77-    86 

CHAPTER  IX. 

Hampton  Court — Mons.  Assolant — Cardinal    vVolsley... 86 — loi 

CHAPTER  X. 
Harrow-on-the  Hill  — Byron'-;  Early  Days — Hampstead  Heath — Ru- 
ral Sports — Kissing  inthi  Ring,  Highgate,  &c, 101  — 1 16 

CHAPTER  XL 
A  London  Law  Court — The  English  on  America —  The  Duke  of 
Somerset — The  Land  Laws,  &c  , — The  Courts  of  Queen's 
Bench  and  Exchequer — Nomination  of  Sheriffs — Lord  Mayor's 
Banquets— The  Right  Honorable  William  Cubitt,  M.  P.,  Lord 
Mayor  of  London — A    Village  Graveyard — Curious  Epitaphs.     117 — 130 

CHAPTER  XII. 
Sanitary  Science — House   and  Town    Sewerage — Its  Influence    on 

Health  and  Longevity 131  — 142 

CHAPTER  XIII. 
The  Royal  Mint — A  Distinguished  Man  and  a  Club  Cub— Sir  John 

Shelley— The  Illusions  of  Hi.story .      143—150 

I 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS.  , 

CHAPTER  XXV. 
The  Derby  Day— British  Love  of  Sport — The  Popularity  of  the  Turf 

—The  Celebrated    Racer  Eclipse 151  — i6o 

CHAPTER  XV. 
Dover— Fashionable  Society  on  the  Seaside — The  past  and  Present 

—Dangers  on  the  Old    Road 160—167 

CHAPTER  XVI. 
Dover — The    Cinque    Ports — Ancient    Customs — Walmer  Castle — 
Deal — Death  of  the  Duke  of  Wellington — The    Middle    Age 
Monks — Religious    Intolerance 168 — 176 

CHAPTER  XVII. 

Folkestone— Club  Life— Martello  Towers — Shorncliff  Camp  and  the 
Organization  of  the  British  Army — Visit  to  a  Country  H  juse — 
Lord  Ellenborough— Etiquette,    &c 176—184 

CHAPTER  XVIII. 
Visit  to  a  Country  House— Lord  Ellenborough — Matters  of  Etiquette 

— Osmond   Priaulx — Tourists I84 — 188 

CHAPTER  XIX. 
Romney  Marsh   and   Dungenees — The    Military  Canal — Napoleon 
— Plans  for  the  Invasion  of  England — The    Origin  of  English 
Lighthouses — A  Type  of  the  Modern    British  Politician 189 — 199 

CHAPTER  XX. 
From  Folkestone  by  Dover.  Deal  and  Canterbury  to    London — The 

Cathedral— The  "Ashes"  of  Kings— The  Fate  of  Sovereigns,  &c.    200—208 

CHAPTER  XXI 
Chatham — Faversham — Rochester — Sir  Francis   Doyle — Gads'  Hill 
— Cobham  Hall — Mss    Letters  of  Sir  John  Peyton,  Governor  of 
the  Tower  and  of  the  Island  of  Jersey — Edmond  Beales   The 
Reformer 208—217 

CHAPTER  XXII. 
Seven   Oaks— Montreal— The  Amhersts— Sir  Philip  Sidney— Knoll 
Castle— Showmen— Towbridge   Wells— Battle  Abbey— Return 
to   London   217— 23> 

CHAPTER  XXllL 
The  Anglo-Norman  Isle  of  Guernsey — Literature  &c.,— The  Sport- 
ing Club— The  Institutions  of  the  Island,  &c.— Hauteville 
House,  Victor  Hugo,  Private  Theatricals,  &c.— Public  Lec- 
tures, &c.— St.  John's  Readings— Lectures  on  Electricity— 
Workingmen's  Association — Remarks  by  Colonel  J.  L.  Peyton — 
Physical  Features,  Former  State,  &c.— The  Island  One  Hun- 
dred Years  Ago — Religion,  Past  and  Present,  cS:c   231— 26S 

APPENDICES. 

Appendix  A. — Trees— Lines  by  Georges  Metevier 269 — 27o 

Appendix  B.— Letters  of  Dr.  Benjamin  Franklin 271—297 

Appendix  C. — Prominent  Guernseymen  smce    1600 298 


'^OV 


RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES, 


^IP. 


CHAPTER  I. 


LONDON  PAST  AND  PRESENT. 


On  the  22nd  of  November,  186 r,  after  a  boisterous  voyage 
across  the  South  Atlantic  from  Charleston,  S.  C,  by  the  Burmuda 
and  Azore  Islands,  in  the  Confederate  man- of  war,  Nashville, 
Capt.  Robert  W.  Pegram,  commanding,  we  found  ourselves 
comfortably  ensconced  in  a  West-end  (London)  Hotel.— 
Every  one  has  heard  of  London  and  its  November  fogs  — 
Few  Americans  know  what  either  exactly  is.  Daniel  Web- 
ster, after  his  return  to  the  United  States,  was  asked  what 
he  thought  of  London,  and  replied,  "I  have  not  yet  done  wonder- 
ing." This  language  gives  expression  to  the  sentiment  with  which 
it  has  always  inspired  us,  and  we  are  sure  we  shall  never  cease  to 
wonder  at  London  or  a  genuine  London  fog,  dim,  dreary,  sullen 
as  it  is,  particularly  in  November,  when  it  is  a  vile,  double  distilled 
fog  of  the  most  intolerable  kind.  Winter  has  already  scattered 
his  shafts,  and  this  penetrating  fog  comes  like  a  demon  in  search 
of  the  dead  strewn  in  town  and  country,  through  forest  and  field. 
It  is  cold,  it  is  wet,  it  is  dark,  it  shrouds  all  things  in  a  ghostly 
gloom,  a  smoke  like  darkness.  But  for  the  gas  lights  it  would  be 
black  as  the  ninth  plague  of  Egypt  at  mid-day.  Looking  out  of 
our  window  in  Trafalgar  Square,  the  morni"g  after  our  arrival, 
we  sa%v  the  town  wrapped  in  a  vast  winding  sheet  of  gray  mist 
and  yellow  smoke.  It  was  eleven  o'clock,  still  there  was  no  si^n  of 
day  ;  gas  blazed  in  street  lamps  and  shop  windows.  The  smoke 
was  thick,  the  mist  thicker,  the  sky  black  ;  few  persons  were 
abroad  ;  fewer  cabs,  and  the  drivers  of  these  few  shouted  appar- 
ently at  the  darkness  through  which  they  slowly  groped  their 
way.  About  one  o'clock  the  fog  for  a  few  moments  cleared  up, 
and  seemed  sneaking  off  into  the  country.  The  blackened  sky 
became  yellow,  and  the  sun  loomed  as  through  a  glass  darkly. — • 
Our  spirits  were  reviving  when  the  sun  quickly  covered  himself 
again  with  the  clouds  of  night  and  sailed  unseen  across  the  sky. 

Stiff  in  every  limb,  with  tender  feet  and  heavy  head,  the  effects 


2  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

of  a  winter  voyage  across  the  ocean,  a  tour  round  our  chamber 
contented  us  on  this  our  first  day  in  the  great  metropohs.  Look- 
ing out  on  the  cloudy,  muggy,  dark  and  wretched  streets,  strange- 
ly illuminated  with  flickering  ^as-lights,  if  the  writer' did  not  for 
the  first  time  in  his  life,  wish  himself  another  man,  he  certainly 
wished  himself  in  another  place.  The  vitality  of  our  youth  was 
not  to  be  quenched,  however,  by  such  surroundings,  and  substi- 
tuting the  philosophy  of  maturer  years  for  any  depressing  heavi- 
ness under  which  we  were  suffering,  we  soon  plucked  up  spirits, 
and  in  a  few  weeks  commenced  those  explorations  which  have 
left  us  ever  since,  like  Mr.  Webster,  "wondering." 

Let  us  take  a  glance  at  this  grim  old  metropolis  :  There  is  no 
romance  about  the  London  of  the  present ;  tourists  have  rummaged 
it  from  end  to  end — it  is  known  the  world  over  from  Belgravia  to 
Bethnel  Green,  from  Camberwell  to  Campdentown.  Yet  it  still  in- 
terests and  fills  the  stranger  with  astonishrnent.  The  more  he  knows 
of  it,  the  more  he  wishes  to  know.  Widely  understood,  as  it  may  be 
the  number  familiar  with  that  great  capital  is  infinitesimal  wh^n 
compared  with  the  sedentary  world  who  are  almost  totally  igno- 
rant of  all  but  its  name.  This  is  some  excuse  for  re-telling  the 
old  story  of  its  wonders  and  mysteries. 

The  stranger  in  London  is  bewildered  at  its  extent,  its  gloomy, 
grandeur,  its  grim  magnificence  He  sees  before  him  a  labyrin- 
ihine  confusion  of  streets,  straight,  broad  and  spacious,  narrow,, 
crooked  and  filthy,  according  to  locality,  and  intersecting  each 
other  at  every  possible  angle.  With  a  correct  general  idea  of  the 
metropolis,  gathered  from  a  chart,  he  cannot  find  his  way  from 
one  quarter  to  another  without  the  aid  of  a  guide,  or  even  retain  his 
knowledge  of  the  points  of  the  compass,  unless  he  remains  in  the 
vicmi^ty  of  such  leading  thoroughfares  as  the  Strand,  Oxford  Street 
pr  Piccadilly.  ,  "He  may  spend  weeks  with  all  the, ardour  of  an 
^xplofer,  perambulating  the  side-walks  and  visiting  the  principal 
objects  of  curiosity,  and  still  have  an  imperfect  idea  of  the  place. 
The  mass  of  highways  and  byways  is  still  as  intricate  as  a  CIvinese 
puzzle,  though  during  the  last  decade  large  sums  have  been  ex- 
pended in  straightening  old  and  opening  new  avenues  for  the  pur- 
pose of  simplifying  the  system  of  streets,  and  more  readily  ac- 
commodating the  trafflc. 

The  city  of  London  proper  commences  at  Temple  Bar,  and 
covers  an  area  of  little  more  than  one  square  mile,  and  contains  a 
population  of  111,784  persons  only.  As  the  gateway  is  without 
beauty  and  obstructs  the  mpst  crowded  of  London's  thorough- 
fares, its  retention  is  a  striking  illustration  of  the  conservative 
character  of  the  English  mind,  of  the  tenacity  with  which  our  an- 
cestors cling  to  whatever  js  old. 


RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES.  3 

Passing  this  so-called  barrier,  we  are  in  the  city  proper.  It  is 
not  the  city  of  former  times,  full  of  densely  inhabited  houses  and 
fine  residences,  belonging  to  the  chief  merchants,  the  landed  gen- 
try and  the  nobility  — the  great  landlords  of  the  country  ;  the  city, 
as  it  once  was,  of  small  and  narrow  streets,  of  mean  lath  and  plas- 
ter houses  on  rickety  wooden  frames  and  of  all  imaginable  sizes 
and  shapes  ;  the  city  of  badly  cleaned  and  foully  smelling  streets, 
and  of  desolating  plagues  bursting  forth  from  time  to  time  and 
carrying  off  myriads  of  people.  On  the  contrary,  it  is  the  city 
par  excellence  of  the  trade,  business  and  commerce  of  the  modern 
world.  The  city  of  the  Bank,  the  Mint  and  the  exchange  of 
Lombard  Street,  Cornhill  and  Mincing  Lane,  of  warehouses  and 
Counting  rooms,  of  vaults  and  offices,  in  a  word,  of  those  great 
commercial  houses  whose  extended  operations  embrace  the  entire 
globe.  The  city  where  the  Bankers,  brokers,  merchants,  stock 
jobbers,  money  changers,  Jew  and  Gentile,  most  do  love  to  con- 
gregate, and  where  they  regularly  cast  up  the  accounts  of  the 
world. 

Fleet  street  and  the  Strand  are  the  great  arteries  of  the  city, 
and,  passing  by  Temple  Bar  from  Charing  Cross,  extend  to  Lud- 
gate  Hill,  where  St.  Paul's  rears  its  towering  front.  Here  making 
the  circuit  of  the  Cathedral  and  thence  branching  into  Cheapside, 
Poultry,  Cornhill  and  Cannon  streets  These  are  a  few  only  of 
the  great  arteries  through  which  the  tide  of  population  and  busi- 
ness flows.  Thousands  of  others  in  all  directions  are  daily 
choaked  with  vehicles  and  myriads  of  human  beings  who  swarm 
like  bees  on  every  spot. 

Around  this  focus  or  centre  of  business  have  g^rown  up,  with 
incredible  rapidity,  the  different  quarters  known  as  Brompton, 
Hammersmith,  St.  John's  Wood,  etc.,  which  with  the  "city"  con- 
stitute what  is  known  as  the  Metropolis,  or  the  Metropolitan  dis- 
trict, spreading  over  an  area  i8  miles  long  by  14  wide,  and  con- 
taining a  population  of  about  3,800,000  souls.  This  is  the  monster 
London  which  has  been  so  well  styled  a  province  covered  with 
houses.  The  houses  are  built  almost  entirely  of  brick  and  are  gen- 
erally inferior  in  size,  architectural  ornament  and  imposing  appear- 
ance. They  inspire  no  idea,  indeed,  that  they  are  the  palaces  of  the 
rich  and  great.  The  humid  atmosphere,  causing  the  smoke  to  settle 
down  upon  the  dwellings,  soon  changes  their  color,  the  brick  be- 
coming of  a  dingy  gray,  the  whole  assuming  a  dreary  and  dismal 
appearance.  Buckingham  Palace,  the  residence  of  the  Queen,  and 
on  which  vast  sums  have  been  lavished,  during  the  reign  of  George 
iV  and  since,  is  not  equal  to  many  of  the  country  seats  of  the  nobil- 
ity, and  St.  James'  Palace,  where  the  Royal  Drawing-rooms  or  re- 
ceptions are  held,  and  which  was  the  town  residence  of  the  royal 


4  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

family  until  the  accession  of  Queen  Victoria,  is  a  low,  red  brick 
building  resembling  a  lying-in  hospital,  for  which  purpose  it  was 
originally  intended.  Excepting  St.  Paul's  Cathedral,  Westminster 
Abbey,  the  New  Parliament  Houses,  Somerset  House,  the  British 
Museum,  the  University  of  London,  the  principal  club  houses,  and 
some  of  the  fine  old  historical  residences,  such  as  Northumberland 
and  Chesterfield  houses  and  the  new  hotels,  there  is  little  in  the  way 
of  architectural  beauty  or  symmetry  of  which  London  can  boast. 
It  is  a  monotonous  wilderness  of  brick  and  mortar,  where  the 
stranger  sees  little  evidence,  save  upon  stated  occasions  of  solemn 
processions,  of  the  existence  <  fan  opulent  aristocracy  and  brilliant 
court.  The  paucity  of  fine  private  residences  in  this  great  city, 
the  seat  of  the  wealthiest  of  commercial  empires,  is  striking,  and 
can  only  be  explained  upon  the  hypothesis  that  the  money  which 
would  embellish  any  other  capital  is  elsewhere  expended.  And 
this  is,  indeed,  the  fact.  In  England  the  proprietorship  of  landed 
property  carries  with  it  greater  dignity  and  influence  than  in  any 
other  country.  Hence  the  nobleman  directs  his  attention  special- 
ly to  the  improvement  of  his  country  estates.  On  these  he  spends 
the  chief  part  of  his  time,  his  talents  and  capital  in  making  agri- 
cultural experiments,  in  rearing  fine  stock,  and  in  growing  large 
crops.  Here,  if  he  belongs  to  the  old  nobility,  he  keeps  up  a 
baronial  castle  or  a  stately  hall,  dispensing  a  princely  hospitality. 
If  he  is  of  the  class  of  new  rich,  he  builds  a  spacious  mansion  and 
endeavors  to  rival  "my  lords."  These  large  estates  have  grown 
out  of  the  feudal  system  and  the  law  of  primogeniture,  which  Dr. 
Johnson  rather  justified,  because  "that  it  makes  but  one  fool  in  a 
family,"  and  constitutes  one  of  the  peculiar  features  of  England. — 
Among  the  most  magnificent  we  remember  to  have  seen,  during 
a  long  residence  in  the  country,  may  be  mentioned  in  passing — 
those  of  the  Marquis  of  Breadalbane,  whose  property  extends  on 
a  straight  line  from  his  mansion  a  distance  of  lOO  miles,  and  the 
Duke  of  Sutherland's,  which  covers  a  whole  county  in  Scotland, 
extending  from  sea  to  sea.  The  Duke  of  Norfolk's  park  in  Sus- 
sex, is  fifteen  miles  in  circuit,  and  the  Island  of  Lewis,  containing 
500,000  acres,  is  owned  by  a  single  individual  !  The  process  of 
absorption  is  still  going  on,  the  larger  domains  growing  larger  and 
larger  as  the  number  of  proprietors  decrease.  A  hundred  years 
ago  there  were  250,000  proprietors  in  England  and  now  there  are 
only  30,000.  This  is  a  great  evil  certainly  and  must  be  remedied. 
Urgent  necessity  there  is  (){  nationaliziuf^  the  land,  as  the  present 
state  of  affairs  both  in  Engl.uul  and  Ireland  show.  Against  this 
increasing  evil  John  Bright,  the  late  J.  S.  Mill  and  the  Manchester 
party  generally,  have  raised  their  voices  and  are  proceeding  to 
"agitate"  the  country. 


RAMBLING     REMINISCMMMte  y  ^^  '5 

The  English  nobility  and  the  landed  gentry,  only  know  Lon- 
d6n  during  the  season.  What  the  metropolitart  mansions  lack, 
however,  in  exterior  ornament  is  more  than  compensated  by  the 
expensive  and  luxurious  style  of  their  interior  decorations  and 
furniture.  In  the  inside,  everything  is  of  a  sumptuous  and  elegant 
description.  Nothing  is  wanting  which  refinement,  taste  and  cul- 
tivation can  suggest  or  gold  purchase.  Costly  paintings  adorn 
the  walls — they  are  often  more  costly  than  meritorious.  Every 
niche  has  its  statue.  A  simple  list  of  the  houses  of  the  principal 
nobility  and  gentry  where  valuable  collections  of  art  treasures 
may  be  seen  by  any  one  taking  the  trouble  to  make  application, 
would  cover  pages.  The  finest  of  these  is  Stafford  House  (St. 
James'  Park)  which  was  built  by  the  Duke  of  York,  second  son  of 
George  III.  It  is  at  present  owned  and  occupied  by  the  Duke  of 
Sutherland,  who  is  little  else  than  a  titled  booby.  In  Bridgewater 
House,  the  residence  of  the  Earl  of  Ellesmere,  the  collection  of 
paintings  at  the  death  of  the  Duke  of  Bricigewater  in  1803  were 
valued  at  $750,000.  The  collection  now  contains  three  hundred 
and  twenty-two  paintings  of  the  estimated  value  of  $1,500,000. 
We  give  these  figures  because  the  English  are  a  people  whose 
imaginations  are  not  transported  by  figures  of  rhetoric.  They  are  a 
people  with  whom,  not  excepting  glory  itself,  everything  ends  in 
money.*  If  offered  to  the  competition  of  connoisseurs  this  collec- 
tion would  doubtless  fetch  a  larger  sum.  In  no  country  in  Eu- 
rope are  the  arts  so  patronized  and  encouraged  by  the  wealthy 
classes. 

It  is  impossible  for  the  stranger,  amidst  the  confusion  produced 
by  the  multiplicity  of  objects  and  images  that  dance  befo.^'e  his 
eyes  and  glide  away,  to  take  a  comprehensive  view  of  the  whole 
capital.  A  description  of  each  quarter  and  all  the  wonders  pre- 
sented to  his  contemplation,  would  exceed  our  limits — require 
volumes.  We  shall  content  ourself  with  giving  the  result  of  a 
coup  d'ci'/  of  the  capital  from  the  most  commanding  spot  in  the 
city,  the  summit  of  St.  Paul's  Cathedral.      Beyond   question    this 

*The  British  government  votes  to  her  victorious  generals  and  officers  of  in- 
ferior grade,  under  guise  of  public  testimonials  and  swords  of  honor,  magnificent 
pensions  and  huge  sums  of  ready  money.  After  Sir  Garnett  Woolsey's  suc- 
cessful campaign  in  Ashantee  land,  he  was  rewarded  by  a  lump  sum  of 
;/^ 2 5  000  sterling,  and  on  his  return  from  Egypt  raised  to  the  peerage, with  prob- 
ably a  further  sum  of  money  by  way  of  supplying  him  the  means  to  keep  up  the 
state  and  dignity  of  his  Barony.  Lord  de  Sausmarez,  after,  his  brilliant  naval 
victories,  was  voted  $10,000  a  year  for  his  life  and  that  of  his  son  and  grandson. 
These  are  only  a  few  instances  which  occur  to  memory  among  those  whose 
families  are  known  to  the  writer.  All  the  world  knows  the  large  grants  in  the 
way  of  money,  lands  and  houses  made  by  Parliament  to  such  heroes  as  Marl- 
borough and  Wellington. 


6  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

is  the  most  eligible  position  for  seeing  the  metropolis,  and  the 
stranger  no  sooner  mounts  to  the  dizzy  heights  than  he  is  dazzled 
and  bewildered  by  the  extent  and  variety  of  objects  spread  out 
before  his  eyes — one  illimitable  expanse  of  streets,  courts,  alleys, 
squares  and  parks,  alive  with  restless  activity  and  teeming  mil- 
lions. In  the  section  immediately  surrounding  this  centre,  all  the 
financial  transactions  of  the  country  are  carried  on,  principally  in 
Lombard  street,  the  resort  of  the  bankers,  and  Capel  Court,  the 
haunt  of  the  money  brokers  and  stock  jobbers.  Here,  beneath 
the  surface  of  the  streets,  the  private  bankers  have  their  vaults, 
which  with  those  of  the  Mint  and  the  Bank  of  England  contain 
the  treasure  of  the  Kingdom.  In  the  circumjacent  streets  the 
wholesale  business  is  conducted.  In  a  word,  it  is  the  heart  or 
core  of  that  busy  world  of  London,  belonging  to  the  toiling  mil- 
lions, and  in  which  a  drone  is  vara  avis  in  ierris. 

Sweeping  across  the  southern  horizon  the  eye  takes  in  those 
populous  districts  to  bhe  south  of  the  river,  Camberwell,  Lambeth 
and  Peckham.  These  are  crowded  with  artizans  and  the  laboring 
classes  generally,  and  it  is  from  the  lofty  chimnies  of  this  region 
that  thick  volumes  of  smoke  constantly  arise  and  spread  like  a 
pall  over  the  scene.  To  the  east  appear  the  lofty  spires  and 
gilded  domes  of  Greenwich,  surrounded  by  the  deep  green  of  the 
wooded  heights,  while  midway  between  the  Northern  and  South- 
ern limits,  of  the  city  the  river  flows.  This  is  crowded  with  forests 
of  masts,  smoke-stacks  and  funnels  far  as  the  eye  can  reach. 
Along  the  Thames  the  eye  wanders  from  Westminster  Bridge  to 
Victoria  Docks,  a  distance  of  more  than  ten  miles,  which  com- 
prehends the  entire  line  connected  with  the  harbour  and  the  naval 
and  commercial  operations  of  the  kingdom.  All  the  streets  and 
wharves  on  the  line  are  crowded  with  vehicles  carrying  off  the 
goods  which  have  been  landed,  or  bringing  down  cargoes  for 
vessels  to  be  freighted.  The  busy  crowd  which  gathers  here  is 
entirely  different  from  that  seen  near  the  Bank  and  Exchange, 
and  is  composed  of  another  class  of  those  enterprising  men  who 
contribute  so  much  by  their  labor  to  extend  the  commerce  and 
add  to  the  wealth  and  glory  of  England.  This  is  the  peculiar 
haunt  of  shippers  and  importers.  About  midway  in  this  line 
stands  that  huge  edifice  known  as  Somerset  House,  where  all  ac- 
counts of  the  Kingdom  are  audited  and  affliirs  connected  with  the 
internal  revenues  of  the  Empire  are  settled,  and  on  a  line  with  it, 
but  further  down  the  river,  is  the  Custom  House,  the  never  failing 
barometer  of  the  national  prosperity,  on  which  fleet  after  fleet 
bears  down  and  whose  ponderous  cranes  are  perpetually  at  work 
transfering  to  the  gaunt  and  dreary  looking  ware  houses,  which 
cover  this  quarter,  the  immense  stores  contributed  by   the   world 


RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES.  7 

to  the  wealth  and  energy  of  the  British  people.  Also  the  coal 
exchange  and  Fish  Mongers  Hall,  the  latter  the  headquarters  of 
one  of  the  most  ancient  and  wealthy  guilds  in  the  Kingdom. 
Here  also  is  "Shameless  Billingsgate,"  the  famous  fish  market, 
the  resort  of  drunken  sailors  and  oyster  wenches  so  celebrated  for 
its  vulgar  wrangles  and  intolerable  stenches. 

On  the  same  inclined  plane  but  higher  up  the  river,  in  striking 
contrast  to  the  Fish  Market,  are  those  quiet  and  delightful  gar- 
dens extending  in  sloping  greens  to  the  water's  edge  which  be- 
long to  the  inner  and  middle  Temple  Inns  of  Court,  wherein  a 
large  portion  of  practising  barristers  have  chambers,  wherein 
also,  as  in  colleges  and  universities,  so  many  young  men  live  to- 
gether upon  terms  of  easy  freedom,  and  are  supposed  to  be  en- 
gaged in  the  study  of  law,  but  are  in  too  many  cases  engrossed 
with  the  pursuits  of  pleasure.  Lower  dov^n  again  stands  that  re- 
markable monument  of  antiquity,  the  Tower,  the  chief  object  of 
curiosity  with  the  majority  of  strangers. 

•*The  Tower  of  Julius,  London's  lasting  shame, 
With  many  a  foul  and  midnight  murder  fed." 

This  ancient  fortress  cannot  be  visited  without  awakening  in 
the  mind  the  recollection  of  memorable  scenes  and  tragic  stories. 
Hard  by  is  that  lofty  monument  erected  in  remembrance  of  the 
great  fire  of  1666,  of  which  Pope  said,  in  allusion  to  the  inscrip- 
tion it  bears,  accusing  the  Catholics  of  burning  this  Protestant 
city,' 

"London's  high  column,  pointing  to  the  skies, 
Like  a  tall  bully,  lifts  its  head  and  lies." 

On  this  line  also,  are  found  those  extensive  docks  constructed  upon 
a  scale  to  accommodate  the  shipping  of  the  world  and  which  are 
without  a  parallel  among  the  public  works  of  this  or  any  other 
country,  and  near  by,  burrowing  beneath  the  bed  of  the  river,  is  the 
Thames  tunnel, that  wonderful  triumph  of  modern  engineering  skill. 
Diverted  from  its  original  purpose  it  is  now  used  by  the  Chatham 
and  Dover  railway,  numerous  trains  daily  passing  through  it  from 
the  two  sides  of  the  river. 

In  the  opposite  direction,  two  miles  from  St.  Paul's,  is  Trafalgar 
Square,  and  the  Royal  Academy.  Sir  Robert  Peel  once  declared 
in  a  moment  of  patriotic  enthusiasm,  that  this  was  ''The  finest  site 
in  Europe."  The  most  important  work  of  art  in  this  square  is 
the  column  dedicated  to  Nelson,  which  rises  alone  in  solitary  ma- 
jesty, with  its  base  at  once  decorated  and  guarded  by  the  bronze 
lions  of  Sir  Edward  Landseer.  Here  the  famous  West-end  begins, 
in  which  are  grouped  the  Parliament  Houses,  the  Abbey  of  West- 
minster,   the  Royal   Palaces,  the   Home  and   Foreign  offices,  the 


8  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

Headquarters  of  the  Army,  the  Admiralty  and  the  Government 
offices  generally.  Also  the  Club  Houses,  the  residences  of  Court 
retainers  and  all  those  most  distinguished  for  rank  and  wealth, 
and  who  make  up  the  fashionable  world.  This  is  the  quarter 
whence  issue  those  endless  lines  of  showy  equipages  which  roll 
with  stately  grandeur  along  Rotten  Row  through  Hyde  Park  and 
Kensington  Gardens. 

To  the  north  of  Hyde  Park  lies  Tyburnia,  a  handsomely  built 
modern  city,  principally  occupied  by  successful  merchants  and 
bankers,  the  noveaux  riche  ;  all  those  who  are  undergoing,  in  the 
significant  language  of  the  club  houses,  the  transitorial  state  be- 
tween commerce  and  fashion.  Tyburnia  is  a  sort  of  Hades  or 
purgatory  where  aspirants  for  Belgraviaand  Mayfairare  prepared 
to  enjoy  those  Elysian  fields. 

The  health,  beauty  and  comfort  of  the  West-end  are  increased 
by  three  grand  parks,  the  largest  of  which.  Hyde  Park  with  Ken- 
sington Gardens,  contains  688  acres.  In  the  district,  popularly 
known  as  Bayswater  and  Nottinghill,  there  are  likewise  many 
noble  squares,  and  it  is  in  reference  to  these  squares  and  parks 
which,  indeed,  exist  in  every  quarter  of  the  metropolis,  that  it  has 
been  truly  said,  they  are  the  nostrils  and  the  lungs  of  London. 

There  are  few  meritorious  statues  in  the  public  places  of  Lon- 
don ;  a  peculiarity  due,  the  Londoner  will  tell  you,  to  the  English 
climate,  which  quickly  destroys  such  works  of  art  when  exposed 
to  its  action,  but  which  a  stranger  is  more  disposed  to  attribute  to 
a  want  of  appreciation  of  the  fine  arts— sculpture  more  especially. 

Notwithstanding  its  extraordinary  size,  the  health  of  London  is 
better,  as  the  bills  of  mortality  show,  than  that  of  any  large  city  in 
PZurope.  This  fact  is  rightly  attributed  to  the  excellent,  but  still 
inadequate,  system  of  drainage.  The  rapid  increase  of  the  Me- 
tropolis has  made  the  subject  of  drainage  one  of  growing  difficulty 
and  embarrassment,  especially  since  it  became  evident  that  the 
sewers  could  no  longer  be  discharged  into  the  river.  Under  this 
system  the  river  itself  was  but  a  vast  sewer,  and  the  banks  were 
all  but  insupportable.  During  the  summer  the  air  was  filled  with 
noxious  vapors  and  fatal  fevers  generated,  notwithstanding  the 
temporary  expedients  resorted  to  for  correcting  the  evil,  such  as 
scattering  lime  and  other  disinfecting  agents  on  the  water  and  over 
the  slimy  shores.  It  was  the  pressing  importance  of  this  question 
which  led,  in  1858,  to  the  formation  of  a  vast  system  of  sewers,  or 
subterranean  tunnels,  12  feet  wide  and  gi  feet  high,  to  run  by  the 
sides  of  the  river  to  a  point  15  miles  distant,  where  they  discharge 
into  the  river  at  high  tide,  that  the  ebb  tide  may  remove  the  refuse. 
The  total  length  of  the  ^rciit  receiving  sewers  is  72  miles,  and  the 
estifiiated  cost  J|>  15,900  000. 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 


From  this  coup  d'eil  we  gather  the  fact  that  London  so  far  ex- 
ceeds the  capitals  of  other  countries  that  it  may  be  regarded  as, 
/>ar  <^ji;<:^//^w<:<^,  the  metropolis  of  the  world.  It  is  not  only  the 
most  populous,  but  most  wealthy,  if  not  the  most  enterprising. 
The  population  is  greater  than  that  of  the  kingdoms  of  Hanover 
or  Westphalia,  and  nearly  double  that  of  Greece.  It  is  nearly  as 
great  as  that  of  the  City  and  State  of  New  York,  the  most  popu- 
lous of  the  United  States,  and  little  less  than  that  of  Scotland. 
London  may  be  likened  then  to  a  kingdom  concentrated  upon  the 
territory  of  a  very  small  province.  Nowhere,  in  such  a  space, 
can  there  be  found  gathered  such  vast  interests,  so  much  luxury, 
so  much  misery,  so  much  pleasure,  such  sorrow,  so  much  wealth, 
such  poverty  ! 

A  retrospective  glance  at  its  mutations  will  not  be  uninteresting. 
Little  over  two  and  a  half  centuries  ago,  at  the  accession  of  James 
I,  the  population  was  150,000— less  than  half  the  population  of  a- 
dozen  modern  cities  within  a  day's  journey  of  Pall  Mall.  It  had 
increased  to  only  675,000  in  1700,  and  in  1801  had  just  reached 
860,000.  The  progress  has  since  been  more  rapid,  and  in  1870, 
as  we  have  seen,  the  population  exceeded  three  and  a  half  mil- 
lions. 

Queen  Elizabeth,  and  subsequently  James  I  and  Charles  I,  were 
alarmed  at  the  increase  of  the  inhabitants,  and  sought  to  retard 
the  progress  of  the  population.  By  royal  proclamations  Elizabeth 
prohibited  the  erection,  within  three  miles  of  the  city  gates,  of  any 
new  house  or  tenement  "where  no  former  house  hath  been  known 
to  have  been."  James  I  and  Charles  I,  issued  similar  proclama- 
tions, the  latter  declaring  that  if  larger  it  could  "neither  be  gov- 
erned nor  fed."  Charles  was  perfectly  correct  in  this  opinion. 
But  for  the  invention  of  steam,  London  could  not  be  fed  at  this 
day,  and  to  govern  it  requires  an  army  of  10,000  policemen.  In 
the  time  of  Charles  I  the  city  was  without  an  organized  police,  and 
was  the  receptacle  of  thieves  and  robbers  who  stalked  abroad  in 
daylight,  setting  all  authority  at  defiance.  Nor  was  it  lighted  at 
night,  nor  supplied  with  vv-ater,  nor  indeed,  any  of  the  modern 
appliances  tor  securing  health,  comfort  or  security  ;  and  it  is  not 
surprising  that  royal  minds  should  have  been  filled  with  misgiv- 
ings at  the  prospect  of  its  increase. 

The  Strand,  in  the  time  of  Henry  VIII,  was  merely  a  country 
road  leading  through  green  fields  to  Westminster,  and  was  so 
full  of  ruts  and  holes  that  the  King  ordered  it  to  be  paved  at  the 
expense  of  the  owners  of  the  adjoining  lands.  The  Churches  of 
St.  Martin's-in-the-field  and  St.  Giles'-in-the-field  were  so  called 
from  having  been  originally  erected  literally  in  the  fields.  During 
the  reign  of  Elizabeth,  when  it  was  first  rated,  the    Parish    of  St. 


lO  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

Martins  contained  only  one  hundred  persons  who  were  liable  for 
poor  rates.  West  of  this  was  the  open  country,  where  now  stands 
St.  James,  Piccadilly,  Pall  Mall,  Recent  Street  and  the  West-end 
quarter.  The  present  fashionable  Mayfair  was  distinguished  as  a 
dairy  farm,  and  the  region  of  Dover  street  and  Berkeley  square 
was  famous  for  game.  Oxford  street,  then  known  as  Tyburn 
road,  lay  through  a  country  district,  of  which  Pennant  wrote  about 
the  middle  of  the  last  century:  "I  remember  Oxford  street  a 
deep,  hollow  road  and  full  of  sloughs,  with  here  and  there  a  rag- 
ged house  the  lurking  place  of  cut  throats;  insomuch  that  I  was 
never  taken  that  way  by  night,  in  my  hackney  coach,  to  a  worthy 
Uncle's  who  gave  me  lodgings  in  George's  street,  but  I  went  in 
dread  the  whole  way."  What  a  contrast  to  the  brilliant  Oxford 
street  of  to  day. 

A  hundred  years  ago  the  inhabitants  of  Kensington,  intending 
■  to  visit  London  during  the  evening,  collected  in  large  numbers 
and  marched  in  a  body  for  defence  and  mutual  protection.  The 
managers  of  theatres  in  Islington  announced  in  their  play-bills, 
*'A  horse  patrol  will  be  sent  in  the  new  road  to-night  for  the  pro- 
tection of  the  nobility  and  gentry  who  go  from  the  squares  at  the 
end  of  the  town."  It  was  not  considered  safe  to  cross  Lincoln's 
Inn  Fields  on  a  dark  night,  or  Hounslow  heath  after  dark.  The 
streets  were  badly  lit  with  oil  burners.  So  much  so  that  links 
were  carried  before  carriages  and  foot  passengers  as  late  as  1805, 
and  these  linkmen  and  boys  were  amongst  the  most  numerous 
and  disorderly  classes  of  London. 

Bethnel  Green  and  Spital-fields  were  in  1805  rural  districts.-- 
Now  they  are  probably  the  most  populous  districts  of  London, 
and  there  are  miles  of  spacious  streets  in  even  these,  which  are 
considered  the  most  inferior  town  quarters. 

What  is  true  of  them  is  equally  true  of  the  districts  south  of  the 
river,  as  far  as  Dulwich  and  Camberwell,  now  a  dense  mass  of 
human  dwellings  extending  in  all  directions.  In  the  17th  century 
this  was  simply  a  wild  and  unenclosed  tract  of  semi-swamp  land. 

In  the  -17th  century  the  river  Fleet  ran  between  Temple  bar 
and  Ludgate  Hill,  flowing  into  the  Thames  near  Blackfriar's 
Bridge.  Barges  sailed  up  this  stream  to  discharge  their  cargoes 
at  Holborn  hill.  In  the  course  of  time  the  Fleet  became  a  nui- 
sance, nothing  more  than  an  offensive  sewer,  and  was  covered  in, 
and  is  now  one  of  the  main  underground  drains.  On  the  north, 
the  present  district  of  Moorfields  was  simply  what  its  name  be- 
speaks, a  moor  or  fen.  So  was  the  present  site  of  Finsbury,  which 
takes  its  name  from  the  Fens  on  which  it  is  built  and  which  were 
first  drained  in  1527. 

Few  houses   were  built  of  brick  previous  to  the  great  fire  in 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  II 

1666  ;  there  were  some  few  built  however  between  1616  and 
1636.  The  most  interesting  of  those  are  in  Lincoln's  Inn  Fields, 
Covent  Gardens,  Great  Queen  street,  St.  Martin's  lane  and  Al- 
dersgate  street.  The  best  specimen  of  old  English  domestic  arch- 
itecture in  the  city  is  Crosby  Hall  in  Bishopsgate  street,  which  was 
erected  of  stone  and  timber  in  the  15th  century.  When  built  it 
was  considered  the  finest  house  in  London,  and  is  full  of  historic 
interest,  being  referred  to  by  Shakespeare  as  the  residence  of 
Richard  IlL  After  the  great  fire,  the  city  was  rapidly  rebuilt  and 
extended  westward,  but  as  late  as  1708  the  papers  spoke  of  Sir 
Robert  Walpole  when  minister,  thus  :  "The  right  Honorable 
Premier  comes  to  town  this  day  from  Chelsea."  It  takes  less 
time  now  to  reach  London  from  the  sea  coast  at  Brighton  or 
Hastings ! 

Notwithstanding  the  already  gigantic  proportions  of  London,  it 
is  annually  increasing  at  the  rate  of  80,000,  and  for  many  miles 
after  leaving  what  is  technically  known  as  the  Metropolis,  it  is  dif- 
ficult to  define  where  the  country  begins  and  the  town  ends.  The 
everlasting  tide  of  brick  and  mortar  rolls  on,  covering  fields,  parks, 
towns  and  villages.  Silent  villages,  sleepy  hamlets  are  obliterated 
by  masonry  ;  fields  and  parks  are  mapped  out  into  squares,  cres- 
cents and  streets,  shops,  public  houses,  cab  and  omnibus  stands, 
school  houses,  churches  and  suburban  residences  appear,  and  the 
country  becomes  incorporated  into  the  town — an  embodied  part 
of  the  great  city. 

There  seems  to  be  no  limit  to  its  growth,  while  the  country 
advances  in  wealth  and  prosperity,  unless  it  be  presented  in  the 
obstacle  to  which  Charles  I.  alluded —the  inability  of  all  means  of 
transportation  to  bring  the  population  food.  This  difficulty  may 
paralyze  its  growth  ;  it  does  not  appear  that  any  other  is  likely  to 
do  so.  Good  dwelling  houses  for  the  poor,  spacious  streets, 
squares  and  parks,  an  abundant  supply  of  pure  water,  thorough 
drainage,  will  keep  off  plague  and  pestilence — can  railways  and 
steamboats  prevent  famine  ? 

Having  given  the  reader,  briefly,  a  tolerable  idea  (^f  London, 
without  encumbering  the  account  with  figures,  we  shall  have  occa- 
sion in  subsequent  pages  to  make  him  acquainted  with  the  metrop- 
olis in  other  aspects,  and  give  him  a  glimpse  of  its  social  condition 
and  of  some  of  the  subdivisions  of  its  mixed  population,  their 
modes  of  life,  manners  and  customs  and  actual  condition. 

We  will  not  say  that  those  who  have  not  seen  London  have 
seen  nothing,  but  they  have  failed  to  see  a  great  and  curious  spec- 
tacle. Under  its  one  aspect  of  magnificence  it  is  without  a  rival 
in  modern  times,  and  in  its  other  of  degredation,  poverty  and 
crime  it  undoubtedly  surpasses  "all  other  cities —ancient  or  modern. 


12  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

In  the  West- end,  the  rallying  point  of  its  rank  and  wealth,  it  is 
^ayer,  brighter,  more  resplendent  with  fashion,  glitter  and  gold 
than  even  Paris,  and  in  its  remoter  districts  sad  and  dull  without 
a  parallel.  Whatever  pretense  of  life  lingers  about  these  regions 
is  .highly  suggestive  of  still-life,  if  not  of  death  itself,  which  renders 
them  more  truly  appalling,  more  ghastly  than  Pompeii. 


CHAPTER  II. 


THE  DARK  SIDE  OF  LONDON   LIFE. — THE  SOCIAL  DREGS. 

Having  in  the  preceding  chapter  presented  a  general  idea  of  out- 
side London,  we  shall  introduce  the  reader  in  this  to  some  interior 
views.  He  will  not  see  in  them  the  most  pleasing,  interesting  or 
popular  aspects  of  metropolitan  life,  but  there  are  plenty  of  writers 
who  riot  in  descriptions  of  the  beati  monde,  by  which  we  mean 
the  world  of  fashion,  for  neither  wit  nor  learning  are  elements  in 
it.  On  the  other  hand  the  number  is  small  indeed,  of  those  who 
are  willing  to  take  the  less  attractive,  not  to  say  revolting  part,  of 
portraying  scenes  where  vice  wears  no  veil  and  decency  forever 
blushes.     Let  it  be  our  part,  at  least,  to  touch  upon  them. 

During  a  long  residence  in  London,  the  author  gathered  the 
information  embodied  in  this  chapter  from  various  sources  and  by 
personal  visits  to  the  Jiaunts  of  the  destitute,  and  the  dens  of 
thieves.  He  was  sometimes  accompanied  by  a  clergyman  of  the 
District,  but  more  frequently  by  a  brace  of  well  armed  policemen. 
The  scenes  disclosed  to  him  deepened  his  convictions  that  London 
forms  no  exception  to  the  rule  that  sunshine  may  fall  upon  the 
earth  and  bless  it,  but  the  shadow  is  ever  at  its  side.  To  know 
London  you  must  see  both  sides  of  the  picture  —its  dens  of  misery 
its  regions  of  squalid  poverty  and  perennial  suffering,  as  well  as 
its  West  end  mansions  and  shops,  its  noble  squares  and  extensive 
parks.  Prominent  as  is  the  mighty  Babylon  of  our  day  for  its 
wealth  and  grandeur,  it  is  equally  disgraced  by  its  exceptionable 
regions  of  poverty  wliich  excite  pity,  and  of  crime  which  awaken 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  I3 

fear.  While  it  is  undeniably  a  pleasant  thing  to  contemplate  man 
in  all  the  exaltation  of  his  wisdom  and  virtue,  it  is  also  of  service 
to  us  to  occasionally  look  into  his  obliquities  and  to  distinctly  re- 
mark how  great  and  portentious  are  his  follies,  his  crimes  and  his 
sufferings. 

Penetrate  into  remote  quarters,  and  you  find  behind  the  smil- 
ing exterior  of  West-end  wealth  and  splendor,  masses  of  misera- 
ble, over-crowded  houses,  immured,  as  it  were,  in  close  and  nar- 
row streets,  from  which  narrower  alleys  radiate,  where  the  sun 
never  peeps  and  broad  daylight  is  never  seen  ;  swarms  of  poverty 
stricken  people,  pale  with  grief  and  suffering,  emaciated,  toiling 
men  and  women,  by  the  side  of  beggars  and  thieves,  and  all 
maintaining  a  desperate  struggle  with  want^iterally  fighting  for 
life.  No  belle,  glittering  with  jewels,  rolls  in  her  coach  to  the 
Queen's  Drawing  room  without  startling  the  ear  of  dying  poverty 
in  some  hovel  of  wretchedness  and  despair.  No  gaily  dressed 
congregation  reaches  its  fashionable  church  without  encountering 
the  fumes  of  taprooms  and  gin  palaces,  and  mixing  with  their 
crowd  of  squalid,  drunken  customers.  Thus  is  exemplified  the 
truth: 

"Wherever  God  erects  a  bouse  of  prayer, 
The  Devil  always  builds  a  chapel  there." 

The  Royal  Palace  has  its  disgusting  back-ground  of  reeking 
sinks,  slums  and  hovels  in  Pimlico.  The  opera  has  its  counter- 
part in  the  low,  vice-engendering  penny  theatre,  and"  the  balls  of 
the  aristocracy  are  setoff  by  the  costermonger's  two-penny  hop. 
The  fine  shops  of  Regent  street  and  Piccadilly  draw  their  supplies 
of  silks  and  rich  stuffs  from  the  poverty  stricken  dens  of  Spital- 
fields.  The  gayest  and  most  brilliant  streets  of  the  West-end  are 
close  upon  St.  Giles,  the  darkest  London  haunt  of  crime  and 
misery.  Hordes  of  beings  rise  every  morning  without  as  much 
food  as  will  serve  them  through  the  day,  and  who  derive  a  pre- 
carious existence  by  sweeping  the  crossings,  selling  matches,  gath- 
ering bones  or  rags,  riddling  cinders  out  of  dust  holes,  retailing 
apples  or  oranges,  collecting  and  selling  the  refuse  vegetables  of 
the  markets,  running  errands,  and,  worst  of  all,  girls  selling  their 
perishing  charms  for  the  wherewithal  to  buy  bread  and  meat. — 
The  stranger  dreams  not  of  these  things  when  sauntering  through 
Piccadilly  or  Pall-Mall,  where  a  beggar  is  rarely  seen,  and  the 
panorama  of  which  is  but  a  successive  procession  of  prosperous 
industry  and  superfluous  wealth.  The  moral  geologist  of  London 
however,  can  map  out  the  localities  of  the  different  classes,  each 
having  its  haunt,  as  clearly  as  the  physical  geologist  does  the 
chalk  and  clay,  marl  and   gravel  deposits  of  any  given  section  of 


14  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

country.  Each  of  these  localities  is  known  to  them.  They  can 
point  in  an  instant  to  the  retreat  of  the  burglars,  the  shop  lifters, 
the  coiners,  the  dog  stealers,  the  pick-pockets,  the  garroters,  the 
murderer^,  the  house  burners,  the  hiding  places  of  the  infamous 
generally,  where  no  policeman  dare  venture  alone.  The  spots 
where  are  gathered  the  social  dregs,  the  lees^  the  offscourings  of 
the  great  city,  the  Pariahs,  outcasts  and  outlaws,  whose  hands  like 
the  hand  of  Ishmael,  are  against  the  world. 

Formerly  one  of  the  most  notorious  of  all  these  haunts  was  St. 
Giles,  one  of  Dickens'  favorite  resorts  for  studying  low  life  and 
obtaining  materials  for  his  inimitable  sketches.  St.  Giles  was, 
however,  broken  up  by  the  extension  of  Oxford  street  through  its 
heart,  The  inhabitants  did  not  cease  to  exist,  and  the  army  of 
beggars,  knackers,  thieves  and  murderers,  thus  unhoused,  settled 
down  and  crammed  themselves  in  the  district  about  Saffron  Hill 
and  Smithfield,  a  region  where  are  still  seen,  as  in  Hogarth's  day, 
over  gin  sellers'  doors,  ''Drunk  here  for  one  penny,  dead  drunk 
for  two  pence,  and  clean  straw  for  710/hing.'"  Not  even  is  it  safe 
for  the  clergyman  to  enter  this  district  without  police  attendance. 
In  some  parts  it  is  a  huge  bagnio,  in  others  a  thieves'  caravansary  ; 
in  others  are  ware-houses  of  stolen  goods  and  manufacturies  of 
decaying  poisonous  food  ;  the  whole  district  being  a  sink  of  nau- 
seating stenches  and  moral  putridity. 

But  it  is  not  in  such  outlaying  districts  alone  that  masses  of 
human  beings  are  huddled  together  in  filthy  courts  and  alleys. — 
The  Royal  Palace  is  close  upon  the  sinks  and  stews  of  PimJico, 
the  streets  of  bagnios  and  the  dens  of  thieves  who  are  the  tenants 
of  the  Dean  and  Chapter  of  Westminster.  Eaton  Square,  in 
famed  Belgravia,  closely  adjoins  one  of  the  still  worse  drained  and 
most  squalid  parts  of  the  West  end.  All  around  Westminster 
Abbey  are  reeking  rockeries,  under  the  very  noses  of  the  law- 
givers of  the  land.  This  is  equally  true  of  the  fashionable  quarter 
of  Regent  street — it  lies  in  the  midst  of  rookeries,  filled  with  hu- 
man beings  for  whom  modern  civilization  and  progress  has  done 
absolutely  nothing.  The  largest  and  finest  streets  and  quarters, 
indeed  London  over,  have  their  back  ground  of  wretchedness.  In 
these  favored  localities  the  fine  buildings  are  but  screens  for  mis- 
ery behind  them,  which  shocks  the  mind  and  from  which  men 
avert  their  gaze.  In  too  many  cases  industrious,  hard  working 
families  are  huddled  together  in  a  single  room,  a  silting  room  by 
day,  and  by  night  a  bed-chamber.  Many  spots  like  Agar's  Town 
have  been  squatted  upon,  and  it  is  found  impossible  to  remove  the 
squalid  inhabitants.  The  ground  is  undrained,  houses  foul,  the 
streets  filthy,  water  scarce  and  a  clean  life  impossible.  It  is  the 
same  case  in  the  minories,  Shoreditch,  Whitechapel,    Wapping, 


RAMBLING     RKMINISCENCKS.  I5 

and  in  their  antipodes  Paddlno^ton.  Bermondsey  and  Lambeth. — 
The  disreputable  and  the  criminal  classes  and  the  working  people 
are  environed  with  nuisances  and  live  in  dwelhngs  which  barely 
supply  the  most  elementary  wants  of  our  being,  and  where  the 
moral  as  well  as  the  physical  atmosphere  is  full  of  poison,  espe- 
cially for  the  susceptible  nature  of  youth.  If  there  be  goodness, 
generosity,  nobility  in  any  toiling  inhabitant,  it  is  poluted  and 
cramped  by  the  poison  and  penury  of  all  around.  But  of  these 
redeeming  qualities  there  is.  we  fear,  but  little.  The  majority  of 
the  resident  families  are  drunken  and  destitute,  and  filth  and  im- 
morality abound  to  an  extraordinary  extent. 

In  the  districts  occupied  by  the  better  class  of  laborers — the 
the  porters,  policemen  and  such  like — there  is  likewise  extreme 
poverty.  Though  their  wages  are  high,  so  are  their  rents.  Can 
any  one  wonder  that  rent  troubles  exist  in  England  as  well  as  Ire- 
land ?  There  is  another  drain  upon  them,  the  almost  constant 
presence  of  sickness  in  their  dwellings,  and  the  want  of  medicines 
and  medical  advice.  A  few  years  ago,  the  philanthropic  Lord 
Shaftsbury  made  a  visit  to  one  of  the  flavored  localities,  as  they 
are  regarded,  near  Golden  Squares,  and  thus  describes  it  ;  *Tt 
is  a  quarter  inhabited  by  the  most  respectable  of  the  laboring 
classes,  They  were  all  deeply  sensible  of  the  misery  brought  on 
them  by  the  condition  of  their  dwellings  and  the  impossibility  of 
keeping  them  tidy,  and  by  the  fetid  smells  to  which  even  habit 
had  not  reconciled  them.  These  families  have  each  but  one  room, 
about  twelve  feet  square,  in  which  they  sleep  and  live,  and  some 
in  addition  carry  on  their  trade.  I  found  many  of  them  lull  of 
steam,  exhaling  from  clothes  hung  up  across  the  room  to  dry,  after 
having  been  washed,  many  of  them  in  the  same  water,  owing  to 
its  scarcity.  In  every  lamily  we  heard  of  sickness  and  death  ; 
some  had  lost  two  thirds  hardly  any  less  than  one-lialf  of  their 
children.  Their  houses  had  been  for  the  most  part  once  inhabi- 
ted by  separate  families  of  some  fortune,  and  were  partitioned  off 
into  lodging  rooms,  at  weekly  rents,  varying  from  is.6d  for  a  very 
bad  cellar,  to  5  shillings  for  a  large  upper  room.  In  no  case  had 
they  any  but  an  intermittent  supply  of  water  at  the  bottom  of  the 
house, .which  in  some  cases  was  kept  in  water  butts  of  decaying 
wood.  Some  of  these  rooms  were  in  overcrowded  cow  houses, 
where  cows  diseased  by  the  badness  of  the  air,  supply  the  neigh- 
borhood with  diseased  milk,  some  close  to  slaughter  houses." 

From  this  description  it  is  readily  seen  that  the  mortality  must 
be  frightful.  Indeed  it  is  said  to  exceed  that  of  a  well  regulated 
hospital,  and  is  far  beyond  any  losses  England  sustains  in  Afghan 
and  Zulu  campaigns.  Typhus  fever  is  a  constant  denizen.  What 
else,  indeed,  is  possible  when  each  small  liouse  is  occupied  on  an 


1 6  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

average  by  seventy  ?  The  lessee  who  pays  from  -^20  to  ^30 
rent,  sublets  the  rooms  at  from  two  to  three  hundred  per  cent,  on 
the  original  rental.  It  is  common  for  thirty  and  forty  children  to 
sleep  in  a  single  room  18x20  feet.  These  are  the  scenes  of  defile- 
ment and  pestilence  in  which  thousands  of  children  are  reared. 
Their  only  education  is  obtained  in  such  homes  and  in  the  streets 
round  about  them.  They  are  constant  witnesses  of  drunkenness 
which  grows  out  of  this  state  of  physical  defilement,  and  thus  be- 
come familiar  with  beastly  scenes. 

From  these  dens  and  haunts  issue  the  lawless,  roaming  and 
deserted  children  of  the  Metropolis,  over  fifty  thousand  in  number. 
One  half  of  these  dine  out,  living  on  garbage  and  sleeping  under 
porticos,  sheds,  carts,  the  dry  arches  of  bridges  and  viaducts,  in 
out  houses,  saw  pits,  stair  cases,  in  the  open  air,  or  in  those  cheap 
lodging  houses  where  forty  are  placed  in  a  small  room  12x18,  the 
floor  of  which  is  covered  with  straw,  shavings  or  old  rags,  and 
where  they  pay  a  penny  each  for  the  night's  accommodation.  It 
is  in  such  haunts  that  the  larger  part  of  the  crime  which  is  com- 
mitted is  concealed.  They  are  but  nurseries  or  breeding  places 
for  the  prisons ;  the  homes  of  wild,  neglected,  lawless  children. 
These  ^amin  are  seen  in  every  part  of  London.  They  are  bold, 
pert  and  dirty,  half  starved,  hah"  clad,  haggard,  yet  vivacious. 
They  talk  obscene  slang,  raise  the  shout  of  laughter  at  the  reeling 
drunkard,  pick  pockets  and  prowl  in  all  directions  in  search  of 
prey.  Their  only  education  is  obtained  in  their  lodging  houses 
or  gathered  from  the  festering  gutters.  The  principal  part  of 
their  education  consists  in  learning  the  art  of  picking  pockets  and 
committing  other  crimes  without  detection.  To  facilitate  the  work 
of  instruction,  the  professors,  who  are  aged  and  experienced  old 
rogues,  who  have  retired  from  active  life,  resort  to  many  ingenious 
devices  and  contrivances.  Among  those  for  testing  the  ingenuity 
and  skill  of  youth  aspiring  to  become  a  pick-pocket,  is  a  lay  figure 
suspended  by  a  small  elastic  cord  from  a  bell  fastened  in  the  ceil- 
ing. Stuffing  the  pockets  of  this  figure  with  port-monies,  pencil 
cases,  hankerchiefs,  etc.,  they  are  then  buttoned  up  and  the  senior 
class  of  light  fingered  gentry  is  brought  in  for  instruction.  The 
professor  now  diligently  practices  them  in  all  the  arts  and  ways  of 
emptying  the  pockets  of  the  lay  figure  without  sounding  the  bell. 
Those  who  perform  the  task  again  and  again  with  dexterity,  are 
graduated  and  sent  abroad  to  prey  upon  the  public,  while  those 
who  do  not,  are  soundly  flogged.  If  after  repeated  floggings  and 
months  of  instruction,  they  do  not  acquire  the  requisite  delicacy 
of  touch  and  agility  of  action  to  perform  such  sleight  of  hand  ift-.Ws 
they  are  permanently  passed  into  another  class  and  become  ap- 
prentices to  less  difficult  branches  of  the  robbing  profession. 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  I7 

In  the  complicated  state  of  modern  society  there  are  many 
causes  operating  to  produce  the  crime  that  nestles  in  the  streets  of 
great  cities,  which  meets  us  at  every  turn  in  the  rural  districts, 
which  haunts  us  in  our  going  out  and  coniing  in,  which  spares 
neither  age  nor  sex.  It  may  be  born  of  ignorance,  of  depravity, 
of  want,  but  above  all  it  must  be  set  down  to  intemperance  ;  to 
the  whiskey  bottle  and  the  ginpalace.  1  hese  are  the  fruitful 
sources  of  the  frightful  demoralization  of  the  people.  In  London 
there  are  180,000  gin  drinkers,  who  spend  $15,000,000  a  year  in 
this  spirituous  drink  alone.  During  a  period  of  thirteen  years 
249,000  males  and  183,920  females  were  taken  in  custody  in  Lon- 
don alone,  for  being  drunk  and  disorderly.  Of  the  ten  or  twelve 
thousand  charges  entered  annually  at  Bow  Street  police  station, 
one-half  are  for  being  drunk  Samuel  Warren,  author  of  "  7>?^ 
Thotcsand  a  Year''  who  was  in  1871  Recorder  of  Hull,  in  the 
course  of  a  long  and  luminous  charge  to  the  grand  jury,  recently 
said;  "As  all  crimes  have  their  origin  in  intemperance  or  igno- 
rance, there  are  two  causes  to  which  it  is  your  duty  to  pay  parti- 
cular attention."  50,000  persons  are  annually  committed  to  pris- 
on in  Scotlaiid,  40,000  in  England  and  it  is  estimated  that  90  per 
cent,  of  these  crimes  arose  out  of  the  drinking  custom  of  society. 
These  are  terrible  facts. 

The  existence  of  the  dangerous  classes,  to  which  we  have  refer- 
red briefly,  in  the  midst  of  modern  society,  under  the  shadow  of 
our  churches,  schools  and  libraries,  is  one  of  the  most  deplorable 
incidents  connected  with  the  vaunted  progress  of  the  age.  Classes 
who  owe  nothing  to  society  but  a  bitter  grudge — who  owe  nothing 
to.  as  they  never  derive  anything  from  civilization.  The  ferocity 
of  these  classes  was  brought  to  light  in  Paris  by  the  French  Com- 
mune— classes  of  whose  existence  scarcely  any  one  had  previous 
knowledge,  and  greatly  added  to  the  horrors  and  terrors  of  that 
era  of  crime  and  bloodshed.  Assi  and  his  associates  were  little 
else  than  "tiger  apirs"  or  demons  in  human  shape.  They  were 
gaunt,  inhuman,  merciless  and  savage ;  a  frightfully  demoralized 
brood,  who  sprang  as  if  from  the  earth,  and  filled  the  streets  of 
the  city,  the  halls  of  the  Tuileries  and  the  saloons  of.the  aristocra- 
cy. All  law  and  order  was  overturned  and  these  barbarians  held 
for  a  time  supreme  command.  Everybody  knows  the  excesses 
and  crimes  ot  that  second  "reign  of  terror."  There  cannot  be  a 
doubt  that  London  contains  an  equally  savage  race  of  "tiger  apes" 
ready  to  rush  forth  on  the  least  occasion,  to  commit  equally  savage 
and  revolting  excesses.  The  world  is  not  iheir  friend,  or  the 
world's  law.  Nor  have  they  any  idea  of  the  governing  authori- 
ties than  that  they  constituted  an  armed  despotism  which  prevents 
their  earning  a  livelihood.     They   hate  all  law    because  they  are 


I^  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

taught  to  believe  that  it  is  but  a  tyranny  administered. for  their  op- 
pression. They  have  no  idea  of  religious  or  moral  principles,  and 
when  they  are  aroused,  what  is  to  restrain  the  exercise  of  their 
grossest  passions  ?  Society  has  no  greater  enemy  than  these 
neglected  classes  -  the  wretched — the  half  fed  dregs  of  the  nation, 
who  fester  in  the  cesspools  of  all  great  cities.  All  must  shudder 
at  the  flood  of  crime  which,  like  a  lava  stream  flowing  from  a  vol- 
cano and  destroying  the  vineyards  of  the  sunny  land,  is  apparent- 
ly, in  spite  of  repression  and  detection,  withering  the  good  of  the 
world  and  scorching  its  promises  into  the  ashes  of  disappointment. 
Yet  in  our  opinion  there  is  no  reason  for  despair.  The  earnest 
and  thoughtful  know  that  below,  deeper  than  all  these  bad  influ- 
ences and  more  powerful,  there  is  the  true  spirit  bubbling  up, 
through  the  hot  crust  of  evil  and  neglect,  in  springs  of  purity — 
that  truth  and  falsehood  are  grappling  and  no  one  has  ever  known 
truth  to  have  the  worst  of  it,  in  a  fair  and  open  encounter.  This 
spirit  is  pouring  itself  forth  by  a  thousand  channels,  is  making 
religion  its  minister  and  science  its  handmaid.  It  is  sent  forth  in 
sermons,  essays,  lectures,  pamphlets,  novels,  poetry — in  a  thous- 
and ways  we  are  told  that  refinement  and  barbarism  are  contend- 
ing powers,  and  in  order  that  the  rich  may  enjoy  their  luxury  the 
poor  must  be  elevated  ;  that  one  class  of  the  family  of  man  can 
never  be  happy  while  others  are  miserable.  This  is  the  voice 
which  urges  noble  n:en  to  give  to  the  poor  parks,  picture  galleries 
and  libraries,  baths  and  wash  houses,  improved  dvvelljngs  which 
will  enable  them  to  live  with  some  decency  and  refinement.  In 
short,  the  true  spirit  of  the  times  is  one  directed  to  the  improve- 
ment of  the  moral  and  social  state  of  the  masses.  This  spirit  has 
already  accomplished  much  since  these  hotes  were  penned,  in 
eradicating  and  repressing  the  evil^  of  which  we  have  spoken,  and 
when  it  was  impossible  utterly  to  eradicate  them,  to  mitigate  their 
evils.  Let  us  hope  that  this  great  and  beneficent  work  will  be 
ceaselessly  prosecuted  until  the  holy  mission  is  accomplished.  It 
is  no  doubt  painful  to  have  seen,  at  times  it  may  be  depressing  to 
reflect  over  such  things  and  scenes  as  those  just  described.  The 
man,  however,  who  has  a  heart  to  appreciate  and  a  brain  to  un- 
derstand, cannot  but  be  improved  by  such  extension  of  his  knowl- 
edge. No  matter  where  he  may  be  afterwards  placed,  he  has  laid 
up  for  himself  mental  food  for  life. 

Charity,  curiosity  and  philanthropy  have  united  to  portray 
with  uniform  accuracy  all  the  incidents  iri  the  life  of  th^  London 
poor.  Home  missionary  societies,  newspaper  reporters,  adven- 
turous philanthropists,  and  the  intelligent  foreii»ner  have  pene- 
tt-ated  into  their  rett-eats  and  have  brought  to  light  innumerable 
details,  curious,  sad  and  revolting.     The  darkest  recesses  of  their 


RAMBLING     REMINISCIM   i  -  I9 

social  state  have  been  revealed  to  us.  An  daborate  inventory- 
has  been  made  of  their  defects,  physical,  moral  arid  spirit'Tal.  We 
know  what  their  dwellings  are,  how  they  live  ;  the  amount  of 
their  incomes  and  how  they  spend  them,  what  they  save  or 
rather  what  they  do  not  save;  how  they  are  taxed  and  what  usury 
they  pay  ;  how  many  can  read  and  write,  what  they  cat,  drink  and 
wear,  how  many  live  in  one  house  and  sleep  in  one  bed,  and 
and  finally  how  much  sooner  they  sink  into  graves  than  the  com- 
fortable classes.  All  has  been  investigated  and  lies  exposed  to 
the  public  gaze.  The  physician  has  inspected  their  sores,  and 
the  magistrate  their  vices.  The  Divine  knows  how  many  do  not 
attend  church,  and  the  teetotaler  how  many  frequent  the  gin  shop. 

It  was  highly  desirable  that  such  information  ahould  be  ob- 
tained. Having  procured  it,  those  who  are  willing  and  able  to 
aid  the  poorer  classes  in  their  efforts  to  elevate  themselves,  now 
know  what  measures  to  take,  how  the  existing  evil  may  be 
remedied. 

It  is  not  our  purpose  to  enter  into  these  grave  questions.  We 
shall  confine  ourselves  to  giving  some  of  the  details  of  the  daily 
life  of  the  50,coo  prowlers  of  the  streets.  The  people  and  au- 
thorities of  London  will  doubtless  know  how  to  grapple  with  the 
subject  in  its  practical  bearings. 

The  nomadic  population  of  London,  the  vagabonds  or  Metro- 
politan Gypsies,  gr  those  who  live  upon  the  settled  classes  at 
large,  is  composed  pretty  much  as  follows  ;  Beg<^ars  of  all  kinds, 
I  one  grubbers,  mud  larks,  patterers,  costermongers,  fruit-and-fish 
sellers,  dogsellers,  hawkers  of  all  kinds,  finders,  sifters,  street  ar- 
tists, musicians  and  showmen,  acrobats  ;  in  short,  the  entire  loose 
and  wandering  population.  The  "finders"  are  a  leading  class  and 
live  by  picking  up  in  the  public  thoroughfares,  bits  of  coal,  ends 
of  half  smoked  cigars,  bones,  rags,  and  such  like  odds  and  ends, 
which  they  manage  to  sell  for  money. 

In  addition  to  the  waifs,  in  the  way  of  lost  articles,  picked  up 
by  these  Finders,  they  in  the  course  of  their  trade  of  living  in  the 
thoroughfares,  occasionally  find  the  way  into  the  pockets  of  the 
inexperienced  and  unwary.  Indeed  it  is  believed  that  the  larger 
part  of  the  "findings"  of  these  light  fingered  gentry,  are  of  small 
articles  which  have  never  been  lost.  The  largest  and  most  influ- 
ential division  of  the  street  Bohemians  goes  t3y  the  name  of  the 
costermongers,  and  this  class  includes  fish  sellers,  retailers  of  veg- 
etables, oranges,  ginger  beer,  pop-cock,  fruit  and  such  like  arti- 
cles These  wandering  traders,  people  who  carry  their  stock  upon 
their  backs  or  in  a  hand  barrow,  are  the  hucksters  and  green- 
grocers of  the  streets,  and  supply  a  large  portion  of  the  working 
population    with  food,    little  comforts,  and  the    lighter  articles  of 


20  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

dress.  The  "upper  ten"  of  these  occasionally  own  a  donkey  and 
cart.  Many  women  and  even  children  belong  to  this  roving  body 
of  tradesmen,  and  scarcely  any  of  them  can  read  or  write. — 
Amongst  these  the  percentage  of  Irish  is  very  large,  and  they  are 
said  to  assume  a  place  among  the  lowest  strata  of  society  in  other 
great  provincial  cities,  as  well  as  in  London.  A  fact,  if  true, 
strangely  in  contrast  with  the  settled  position  the  Irish  win  in 
America  by  their  steady  industry  and  many  noble  qualities. 

Leaving  the  class  of  itinerant  hucksters,  we  next  come  to  the 
patterers,  or  distributors  of  wayside  literature,  the  street  musicians 
or  organ  grinders,  the  sellers  of  water  cresses,  the  keepers  of  cof- 
fee stalls,  where  a  black  mixture,  one-half  chicory  and  the  other 
half  possibly  catsup — it  tastes  like  it — is  sold  at  a  half  penny  per 
cup  ;  the  cat's  meat  retailers,  whose  stock  consists  of  the  carcasses 
of  defunct  horses  and  dogs;  ballad  singers  who  parade  in  front  of 
the  best  houses,  about  eleven  o'clock  p.  m.,  making  night  hideous 
with  their  shrieks ;  play  bill  sellers  and  purveyors  of  dubious 
news ;  bone  grubbers  and  mud  larks ;  crossing  sweepers,  street 
performers  and  show  men;  travelling  menders  of  chairs,  umbrel- 
las, clocks  and  pots,  and  the  professional  tinkers  ;  sellers  of  bon- 
net boxes,  toys,  stationary,  plaster  statuary,  songs,  ditties  and  last 
dying  speeches  ;  vendors  of  tubs,  pails,  mats,  crockery  and  black- 
ing; oflucifer  matches,  which  won't  light,  corn  salves,  clothes 
pegs,  brooms,  sweet  meats,  commonly  called  "cholera  pizen,"  ra- 
zors, which  like  those  immortalized  by  Peter  Finder,  were  not 
meant  to  shave  but  sell ;  dog  stealers  and  venders  of  dogs,  dog 
collars,  birds,  coals  and  sand ;  scavengers,  dust  men  and  many 
others,  it  is  believed  that  not  fewer  than  60.000  individuals  be- 
long to  this  class,  and  like  the  50,030  mentioned  previously,  find 
their  living  in  the  streets. 

As  the  wine  and  spirit  business  is  the  final  resort  of  old  army 
and  navy  officers,  who  wish  to  add  to  their  pensiijns ;  of  broken 
down  gentlemen,  and  of  prodigal  sons,  who  are  indeed  their  own 
best  customers,  so  the  costermonger's  trade  is  taken  up  by  specu- 
lators of  a  lower  grade,  when  all  other  avocations  fail.  It  often 
happens  that  you  will  find  among  the  patterers,  those  who  have 
been  clergymen  in  the  established  church,  and  among  the  orange 
and  herring  sellers,  those  who  have  been  at  one  time  in  their  lives 
mechanics  or  laborers.  As  a  general  rule,  however,  the  costers 
are  a  distinct  people.  The  children  of  the  costers  grow  up  cos- 
ters, as  gypsies'  children  grow  up  gypsies.  They  acquire  the 
slang,  the  wandering  habits,  and  the  vocation  of  their  parents ; 
and  rarely  in  after  life  settle  down  to  any  fixed  employment.  VV^hen 
efforts  have  been  made  by  benevolent  and  well  intentioned  people 
to  reclaim  the  children,  it  has  been  generally  found  impossible. 


i 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  21 

The  author  was  informed  by  his  friend,  Rev.  Francis  C.  T.  Mo- 
ran,  brother  in-law  of  Sir  Hardinge  Gifford,  present  Solicitor- 
General,  Incumbent  of  St  Philipps.  the  Evangelist,  Peekham,  one 
of  the  worst  quarters  of  South  London,  that  a  young  girl  of 
twelve  years  of  age,  whom  he  had  taken  fron)  her  parents  to 
bring  up  as  a  domestic  in  his  family,  was  in  a  few  months  so  op- 
pressed with  the  confinement,  the  ease,  comfort  and  plenty  of  a 
well  regulated  household  and  the  restraints  of  civilization,  that 
she  availed  herself  of  an  opportunity,  when  sent  out  upon  an 
errand,  to  return  to  her  poverty  and  the  Arab  freedom  of  her 
street  life,  and  no  persuasion  on  his  and  Mrs.  Moran's  part  could 
induce  her  to  give  it  up  again.  She  preferred  the  bare  existence 
she  could  pick  up  in  the  streets  with  its  liberty,  to  all  that  religion, 
civilization  and  plenty  could  give  her  when  restricted  to  the  con- 
ventional rules  of  society  an>ong  domestics.  And  had  she  been 
acquainted  with  the  poet's  lines  would  have  probably  quoted 
them,  "give  me  again  my  hollow  tree,  my  crust  of  bread  and 
liberty." 

"Bless  you,"  said  one  of  these  wild  wanderers  when  asked  how 
they  live,  "we  don't  find  a  living  at  all,  it  is  only  another  way  of 
starving."  While  this  is  true  of  a  majority,  some  of  them  do 
well,  especially  the  dealers  in  fish  and  vegetables,  the  higher 
grades  of  whom  make  fair  earnings,  but  unfortunately  they  are 
spent  as  quickly  as  made.  The  costers  are>a  gambling,  improv- 
ident set,  fond  of  cards,  liquor  and  tobacco.  After  business  hours 
they  retire  to  their  dens,  and  with  only  the  feeble  light  of  a  tallow 
candle  pass  hours  at  all-fours,  blind  hookey,  or  cribbage.  When 
excited  they  lay  heavy  bets,  but  play  principally  for  beer  and  gin. 
A  majority  of  costers  belong  to  what  are  called  the  "sporting 
community  ;"  are  fond  of  pugilism,  horse  racing,  dog  fighting  and 
rat  killing.  They  are  always  present  at  places  of  amusement, 
such  as  penny  gaffs,  two  penny  hops,  and  three  penny  theatres. 
The  boys  are  early  taught  to  fight,  or  as  it  is  called  in  their  slang 
to  "work  their  fists. '  All  disputes  between  them  are  settled  in 
the  ring,  where  no  interference  is  allowed  by  the  umpires,  but  the 
antagonists  are  permitted  to  fight  it  out.  Of  these  arenas  there 
are  several  in  each  quarter,  located  generally  in  underground 
London  and  these  encounters  usually  take  place  at  night,  and  are 
witnessed  by  men,  women  and  children.  Serving  out  a  police- 
man is  the  most  noted  exploit  of  a  young  coster.  Until  he  has 
served  out  at  least  one  of  the  legal  custodians  of  public  order,  he 
has  no  standing  in  the  burrowing  community.  The  policemen 
are  called  "Bobbies"  or  "Peelers."  They  are  so  called  in  mem- 
ory of  their  founder,  the  late  Sir  Robert  Peel,  under  whose  au- 
spices they   were  introduced    to  supercede  the  "Charlies,"   and 


22  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

Bow  street  runners  of  the   precedino^  generation.      Thus   says 
l^urns : 

"At  length  attacked  by  runners  three 

Peg  fell,  besmeared  with  wounds  so  gory, 
And  Bob  was  hanged  on  Tyburn  tree, 
She  died  for  love  and  he  for  glory." 

Between  the  bobbies  and  the  costers  there  is  perpetual  war. 
Strategy,  tactics,  treachery  and  cunning  are  employed  by  both 
sides  to  secure  victory.  When  a  coster  has  been  unlucky  and  is 
captured,  and  some  of  them  have  been  in  prison  a  dozen  times, 
ihey  are  looked  on  as  martyrs  by  their  comrades.  After  their 
imprisonment  and  return  to  their  friends,  they  are  invariably  re- 
lieved and  rewarded  by  a  general  subscription.  Long  inured  to 
this  war  with  the  Peelers,  they  acquire  the  skill,  cunning,  and 
treachery  of  savages.  The  coster  endeavors  to  take  the  peeler  or 
crusher  by  surprise,  and  often  crouches  at  the  entrance  of  a  court 
until  his  foeman  passes,  when  a  stone  or  brick  is  hurled  and  the 
coster  immediately  vanishes  till  the  effect  of  the  blow  is  known. 
If  the  crusher  is  brought  to  the  ground,  he  is  quickly  mauled 
with  his  own  baton  which  the  coster  carries  off  in  triumph  to  his 
retreat.  Here  it  is  used  for  the  first  night  to  stir  a  bowl  of  gin 
toddy,  after  which  it  is  burnt,  as  they  cannot  gratify  their  pride 
by  preserving  their  trophy  longer  than  one  evening,  seeing  that 
the  peelers  are  pretty  sure  to  give  the  coster  haunts  a  visit  after 
one  of  their  number  is  served  out ;  and  it  would  go  hard  with 
those  found  cherishing  such  a  souvenir  of  victory.  The  love  of 
excitement  as  well  as  a  fondness  for  gambling  is  universal  among 
the  fraternity  of  costers  ;  even  the  young  are  desperate  gamesters, 
and  no  effort  to  mitigate  the  evil  and  eradicate  the  taste  has  ever 
been  of  the  slightest  avail.  On  the  contrary,  the  very  exertions, 
of  the  police  to  put  a  stop  to  it,  have  seemed  to  increase  their  de- 
sire to  indulge  in  it.  These  incorrigible  scamps  hold  with  Solo- 
mon, "stolen  waters  are  sweet,  and  bread  eaten  in  secret  how  good 
is  it."  Pie  boys  and  butchers'  ypprentices  will  toss  each  other 
for  their  stock  ;  ill  luck  only  increiises  their  recklessness,  and  they 
will  proceed  until  they  have  gambled  away  their  caps,  coats,  era- 
vats  and  even  shirts. 

The  chief  place  of  amusement  for  the  drama-loving  costers  is 
the  "Vic,"  orCobourg  theatre  which  holds  in  its  galleries  about 
2,500  persons.  On  star  nights  it  is  so  crowvled,  that  at  the  back 
it  is  common  to  see  boys  jailed  on  each  others  shoulders  all 
around.  The  rules  of  this  theatre  do  not  require  a  full  dress 
circle  but  rather  its  antipodes,  and  the  heat  on  such  occasions  be- 
ing extreme,  the  costers  generally  divest  themselves  of  their  coats 


RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES.  23 

and  waistcoats  while  the  "ladies"  hang  their  bonnets   and  shawls 
over  the  iron  rail  in  front, 

A  not  unconimon  incident  in  these  theatres  is  thus  graphically 
and  poetically  described : 

Pat  Jennings  in  the  upper  gallery  sat, 

But  leaning  forward,  Patrick  lost  his  hat. 

What  shall  he  do  ?  pay  at  the  playhouse  door 

Three  shillings  for  what  cost  when  new  but  four! 

While  thus  he  ponders  overwhelmed  with  grief, 

George  Richards  whispers,  "Take  my  handkerchief." 

**Thank  ye,"  says  Pat,  "but  one  won't  make  a  line," 

"Take  mine,"  cries  Soper.  and  cries  Green '"take  mine." 

A  motley  cable  now  Pat  Jennings  ties. 

Where  Spilal  6elds  with  real  India  vies, 

Down  darts  the  varied  chord  of  Iris  hue. 

Brown,  black  and  yellow,  speckled,  pink  and  blue, 

George  Bond  below  with  palpitating  hand 

Loops  the  last  kerchief  to  the  coster's  band, 

While  to  the  applauding  galleries  round  him,  Pat 

Made  a  low  bow  and\ouched  the  ransomed  hat. 

An  occasional  burst  of  the  full  band  is  heard  by  gushes,  as  if  a 
high  wind  were  raging.  Recognitions  take  place  every  mom-ent, 
and  "Bill  Smith"  is  called  to  in  a  loud  voice  from  one  side,  and  a 
shout  in  answer  from  the  other,  asks,  "What's  up  ?"  Or  family 
secrets  are  revealed,  and  "Bob  Triller"  is  asked  where  "Sal"  is, 
and  replies  amid  a  roar  of  laughter,  that  she  is  "a-learning  the 
'pi  nanney.'  "  The  conversation  ceases  suddenly  on  the  rising  of 
the  curtain,  and  then  the  cries  of  "Silence!  Ord  a-a  r!  Ord-a-a-r!" 
make  more  noise  than  ever.  Whilst  the  pieces  are  going  on, 
brown,  flat  bottles  are  frequently  raised  to  the  mouth,  and  be- 
tween the  acts  a  man  with  a  tin  can,  glittering  in  the  gaslight, 
goes  round  crying  "Porta  a-r  !  who's  for  port-a-a-r  1"  No  delay 
between  the  pieces  will  be  allowed,  and  should  the  interval  appear 
too  long,  some  one,  referring  to  the  curtain,  will  shout  out,  "Pult 
up  that  'ere  window  blind  !"  or  ihey  will  call  to  the  orchestra, 
"Now,  then,  you  cat-gut  scrapers !  Let's  have  a  ha'porth  of  live- 
liness !"  But  the  grand  hit  of  the  evening  is  always  when  a  song 
is  sung  to  which  the  entire  gallery  can  join  the  chorus.  Some 
actors  at  the  minor  theatres  make  a  great  point  of  this,  and  in  the 
bill  upon  one  night,  when  we  visited  the  "Vic,"  under  the  title  of 
"There's  a  good  time  coming,  boys,"  there  was  printed,  "assisted 
by  the  most  numerous  and  effective  chorus  in  the  metropolis," 
meaning  the  whole  of  the  gallery.  The  singer  himself  started  the 
mob,  saying,  "Now,  then  gentlemen,  the  Exeter  Hall  touch !"  and 


24  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

beat  time  with  his  hand,  parodying  M.  Jullien  with  his  baton.  An 
'' ang cor e^'  on  such  occasions  is  a  matter  of  course,  and,  despite  a 
few  murmurs  of  "Change  it  to  Duck-legged  Dick,"  invariably 
insisted  on. 

The  morality  of  the  costermongering  community  is,  as  may  be 
imagined,  low.  They  do  not  believe  in  the  sanctity  of  the  mar- 
riage vow.  Not  one-tenth  of  those  living  together  are  married. 
They  consider  it  a  waste  of  time  and  money  to  go  through  the 
form  of  wedlock,  when  they  can  live  together  and  be  quite  as 
highly  esteemed  by  their  fellows  without  it.  Among  them  mar- 
riage is  not  honorable,  or  concubinage  disgraceful.  The  unmar- 
ried women  living  with  her  lover  stands  quite  as  high  as  the 
married.  These  unions  last  only  so  long  as  they  are  agreeable  to 
both  parties,  and  are  dissolved  by  mutual  consent  or  otherwise,  as 
the  case  may  be.  New  ones  are  formed  and  costermongerdom  is 
not  scandalized.  The  two  penny  hop  is  usually  the  place  where 
matches  are  made,  and  the  affair  is  generally  settled  the  first 
night  of  meeting.  The  boy  coster  is  probably  not  over  fifteen  and 
the  coster  girl  is  under  twenty.  Having  taken  the  first  step  in  life 
by  their  match  they  set  up  costering  on  their  own  account. 

The  religion  of  the  costers  is  as  low  as  their  morals.  Few  if 
any  ever  attend  church.  Some  have  never  heard  that  there  is  a 
God.  Few  read  and  those  who  can  hate  tracts  which  "gives  them 
the  'orrors."  Ih  religious  matters  the  costers  are  not  more  igno- 
rant than  the  bulk  of  the  poor  population  of  London.  Few  per- 
sons even  in  England  have  an  idea  of  the  practical  heathenism  in 
which  vast  numbers  are  growing  up.  While  this  terrible  condi- 
tion of  affairs  prevails  at  home,  the  sympathies  of  the  Christian 
people  of  England  are  sought  to  be  aroused  in  behalf  of  .the  Afri- 
can blacks  and  the  Chinese  mulattoes  !  And  in  the  19th  century 
it  is  still  true  as  in  the  days  of  Shakespeare,  "in  England  they 
will  not  give  a  doit  to  relieve  a  lame  beggar,  but  will  lay  out  ten 
to  see  a  dead  Indian." 

Upon  this  subject  a  recent  writer ,  one  who  has  investigated  the 
condition  of  the  poor  of  London  minutely  and  elaborately,  remarks 
"that  a  class  numbering  50,000  should  be  permitted  to  remain  in  a 
state  of  almost  brutish  ignorance,  is  a  national  disgrace.  Jf  the 
London  costers  belong  especially  to  the  'dangerous  classes,'  the 
danger  of  such  a  body  is  assuredly  of  our  own  creation  ;  for  the 
gratitude  of  the  poor  creatures  to  any  one  who  seeks  to  give  them 
the  least  knowledge  is  almost  pathetic." 

The  ragged  schools  supported  in  the  neighborhoods  of  the  poor 
and  depraved  are  not  patronized  by  the  costers.  Their  children 
are  never  sent,  and  the  only  education  they  get  is  acquired  like 
that  which  made  Sam  Weller  "sharp,"  in  the  streets,  and  is  in  a 


RAMBLING     REMINISCFNSES.  25 

word,  an  education  in  crime.  In  everything  connected  with  the 
supply  of  their  immediate  wants  without  labor,  in  procuring 
money  without  working  for  it,  they  possess  a  precocious  acute- 
ness.  As  a  natural  consequence,  they  have  an  irrepressible  re- 
pugnance to  any  settled  industry,  and  despise  nothing  so  much  as 
honest  labor.  It  could  scarcely  be  otherwise  when  we  recollect 
the  moral  atmosphere  in  which  the  coster  grows. 

Strange  as  it  may  seem,  certain  rude  principles  of  honor  exist 
among  them.  Such  property  as  they  possess  is  always  exposed 
and  they  leave  their  stall  in  charge  of  a  competitor  in  the  same 
line  of  business  without  the  slightest  fear  or  suspicion.  Their 
table,  their  hand-barrows,  the  stable  containing  their  donkeys, 
are  unwatched,  unguarded  by  lock  or  bolt,  but  the  coster  sleeps 
soundly  and  securely,  relying  upon  the  honor  which  prevails 
among  thieves.  This  is  somewhat  remarkable  when  we  consider 
that  the  donkey  is  included  among  the  unguarded  property  of 
the  coster.  All  costers  have  a  hankering  after  these  little  animals. 
The  strongest  tie  of  affection  in  the  coster's  heart  is  that  which 
binds  him  to  his  donkey.  He  is  kind  to  his  donkey,  however 
cruel  he  may  be  to  others.  Ill  treatment  to  his  donkey  he  re- 
sents as  a  personal  affront-  However  meagre  his  fare  the  coster 
shares  it  with  his  donkey,  always  giving  it  the  larger  portion  of 
his  bread,  and  his  confidence  in  the  intelligence  of  his  donkey  is 
unbounded. 

"It  is  all  nonsense  to  call  donkeys  stoopid,"  said  one,  "them's 
stoopid  as  calls  them  so ;  they'se  sensible,  sensible  to  the  last. 
Not  long  since  I  worked  to  and  from  Guildford  with  my  donkey, 
cart  and  a  boy  ;  Jack,  (the  donkey.)  was  slow  and  heavy  in  coming 
back,  until  he  came  in  sight  of  the  lights  of  Vauxhall  and  then  he 
trotted  on  like  one  o'clock, — he  did  indeed  !  just  as  if  he  smelt  it 
was  London,  besides  seeing  it,  and  knew  he  was  at  home." 

"There  was  a  friend  of  mine,"  said  another  man,  "had  great 
trouble  with  his  donkey  a  few  months  back.  He  was  doing  a 
little  work  on  Sunday  morning  at  Wandsworth,  and  the  poor 
thing  fell  down  dead.  He  was  very  fond  of  his  donkey  and  kind 
to  it,  and  the  donkey  was  very  fond  of  him.  He  thought  he 
wouldn't  leave  the  poor  creature  he'd  had  a  good  while  and  had 
been  out  within  all  weathers  by  the  roadside,  so  he  dropped  all 
idea  of  doing  business,  and  with  help,  got  the  poor  dead  thing  in 
his  cart,  its  head  lolloping  over  the  end  of  the  cart  and  its  poor 
eyes  staring  at  nothing.  He  took  the  place  of  the  donkey  be- 
tween the  shafts.  He  thought  he'd  drag  it  home  and  bury  it 
somewhere.  It  wasn't  for  the  value  of  it  he  dragged  it,  for  what's 
a  dead  donkey  worth,  even  for  cat's  meat  ?  There  were  a  few  per- 
sons about  him  —mourners.     They  were  quiet  and   seemed  sorry 


26  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

for  the  poor  fellow  and  for  his  donkey.  The  church  bells  struck 
up,  and  up  came  a  crusher  and  took  the  man  up  (for  violating  the 
Sabbath)  and  next  day  he  was  fined  ten  shillings,  I  can't  exactly 
say  for  what.  He  never  saw  no  jnore  of  his  animal,  and  lost  his 
stock  as  well  as  his  donkey." 

The  costers,  like  all  other  persons,  when  "tight  up."  are  made 
the  victims  of  the  rapacity  of  usurers.  Not  having  the  f<^/>?/«/  to 
become  the  owners  of  the  tables,  carts  and  hand  barrows  used  in 
their  busi;iess,  they  hire  these  from  persons  who  make  a  support 
by  letting  them  out.  It  is  a  good  living  too;  on  every  ;^ic>o  of 
value  in  hand  barrows,  thus  advanced  by  the  owners,  they  derive 
an  annual  interest  of  not  less  than  20  per  cent,  per  week,  or  one 
thousand  and  forty  per  cent,  per  annum.  This  is  a  usurious  rate 
ofinterest  quite  up  to,  if  not  beyond  that  of  the  most  inexorable 
modern  Shylock.  The  cost  of  a  barrow  is  when  new.  about  J[^2, 
but  no  instance  is  on  record  of  a  coster  having  saved  money 
enough  to  becon:>e  the  owner  of  one.  They  prefer  to  pay  i  or  lis 
per  week  for  its  use.  If  they  had  the  money  they  would  not 
purchase  ;  and  on  several  occasions  when  benevolent  persons  have 
presented  them  with  barrows,  they  have  immediately  sold  them 
at  a  deduction  of  fifty  per  cent,  to  realize  ready  cash — nothing  be- 
ing in  their  eyes  so  desirable  as  immediate  money.  The  owners 
of  the  barrows  live  like  Lords.  One  man  owning  120  barrows 
worth  ^240  derived  from  them  a  net  income  of  ^360  a  year. 
Many  of  these  owners  who  let  barrows  on  a  large  scale,  become  ' 
wealthy  in  the  course  of  a  few  years,  and  often  retire  to  ease  and 
independency  in  an  ornamental  cottage  or  a  suburban  villa. 

With  these  meagre  details  we  must  here  stop.  It  is  a  painful 
subject  inasmuch  as  it  exhibits  a  vast  number  of  human  beings 
living  in  a  degraded  state,  abandoned  to  mere  sensual  life.  The 
darkest  clouds,  however,  are  lined  with  silver  and  this  picture  is 
not  without  some  cheerin^  light.  Evidence  is  not  wanting,  in 
even  these  wretched  beings,  of  human  goodness  which  would 
bring  forth  the  richest  fruit  with  proper  culture.  We  have  never 
felt,  when  visiting  these  haunts,  any  other  sentiment  than  that  of 
commisseration  for  these  unhappy  victims  of  neglect.  It  is  not 
difticult  for  the  well-fed  moralist,  seated  in  his  easy  chair,  his 
slippered  feet  upon  the  fender  and  a  bottle  of  ruby  wine  within 
reach,  to  expatiate  on  the  depravity  of  human  nature  and  the 
beauties  of  virtue,  knowledge  and  religion.  Aye,  preaching  is  in- 
deed easy.  We  first  stigmatize  these  victims  of  misfortune  as 
brutish,  stolid,  wicked  -then  reap  the  rewards  of  their  labors  and 
deny  them  the  dignity  of  citizenship,  take  from  them  all  incentive 
to  perseverance,  all  desire  to  be  respectable,  all  fiiturc  hope,  and 
then  declaim  against  their   recklessness,  their  disorderly  habits, 


RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES.  27 

their  ignorance  and  their  wickedness  !     In  other  words  we  never 
want  a  plea  for  our  own  shortcomings  and  misconduct. 

Could  the  moralist  so  easily  stand  the  wear  and  tear  of  poverty? 
Were  he  subjected  to  their  trials  what  would  become  of  him  and 
his  prudence  and  self  denial?  Where  would  be  this  well  wined 
and  well  dined  honiilist  without  hope  to  stimulate  and  port  to 
fortify?  If  instead  of  his  leisure  to  moralize  upon  the  frailties  of 
human  nature,  he  were  confined  to  some  irksome  employment 
from  dawn  till  dusk,  fed  upon  insufficient  food,  married  to  an 
overvvbrked  and  underfed  factory  girl,  deprived  of  the  enjoyments 
opened  up  by  education,  with  no  place  of  recreation  but  the  pot 
house  or  the  two-penny  theatre,  we  imagine  the  complacent  mor- 
alist would  be  littie  better  than  those  he  looks  down  upon  from 
the  heights  of  his  prosperity  and  enjoyment.  As  no  life  is  pleas- 
ing to  God  but  that  which  is  useful  to  mankind,  would  it  not  be 
wiser  and  more  virtuous  to  labor  to  redeem  these  wretched  people, 
instead  of  denouncing  them  ?  If  after  providing  them  healthy 
employment  and  remunerative  wages,  suitable  amusements  for 
hours  of  relaxation,  books,  newspapers,  lectures,  concerts  and  ex- 
hibitions ;  in  a  word,  doing  our  duty,  putting  our  neighbor  in 
possession  of  all  the  advantages  we  enjoy,  they  continued  incorri- 
gible, it  would  be  soon  enough  to  inveigh  against  their  sins,  the 
sins  of  suffering  humanity.  But  some  people  will  never  learn  any- 
thing, for  this  reason :  because  they  understood  everything  too 
soon.  He  is  a  good  divine  that  follows  his  own  instructions,  and 
these  railing  moralists  would  be  more  useful  men  and  more  reli- 
able guides  if  they  preached  less  and  worked  more,  since  it  is 
agreed  that  the  distinguishing  characteristic  of  a  man  of  merit  is 
to  be  ever  active  in  laudable  pursuits. 


28  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 


CHAPTER  III. 


THE  KEW  GARDENS    AND  RICHMOND  PARK — RUMINATIONS  OVER 
SOME  OF  JOHN  BULL'S  PECULIARITIES. 

So  powerful  was. the  effect  produced  upon  us  by  the  Strange 
experiences  we  had  now  acquired,  and  which  we  have  detailed  in 
the  preceding  chapter,  that  we  resolved,  for  our  heart  was  troub- 
led, our  spirits  depressed,  to  turn  for  relief  to  nature,  for  all  nature 
breathes  the  language  of  hope  and  mercy.  Experience  teaches 
the  soothing  influence  of  the  country,  the  beneficial  effects  of  from 
time  to  time  looking  upon  green  fields  and  bright  flowers  ;  of  giv- 
ing the  mind  an  interval  of  repose  while 'the  body  wanders  over 
scenes  of  beauty,  and  the  heart  expands  under  the  canopy  of 
heaven. 

Thankful  for  the  opportunity  of  leisure  which  enabled  us  to 
enjoy  at  this  time,  rural  sights  and  scenes,  we  set  forth  with  alac- 
rity, in  the  direction  of  Kew  and  Richmond.  We  went  forth 
determined  to  see,  in  the  limited  time  at  our  disposal,  as  much  as 
possible  of  life  in  villages  and  hamlets,  farm  houses  and  cottages  ; 
in  palaces  and  castles,  parks  and  gardens  ;  to  attend  fairs  and  fes- 
tivals—in a  word,  to  mix  with  the  people  and  study  their  habits 
and  customs,  if  possible,  in  all  the  conditions  and  walks  of  life, 
persuaded  that  the  character  of  a  people  cannot  be  obtained  by 
confining  one's  observations  to  a  metropolis,  however  great  that 
metropolis  may  be. 

Our  route  was  down  Parliament  street  to  Westminster,  which 
stands  in  the  centre  of  that  remarkable  locality  which  may  be  re- 
garded as  the  heart  and  core  of  the  British  empire.  P>om  this 
centre  go  forth  the  veins  and  arteries  which  give  vitality  to  the 
most  distant  parts  of  England's  dominions  Here  are  grouped 
the  Parliament  Houses,  in  which  the  Peers  of  the  Realm  and  the 
representatives  of  the  people — the  Lords  and  Commons — assem- 
ble. Here  also  the  innumerable  offices  lor  the  transaction  of  all 
public  business,  civil  and  military  ;  Buckingham  Palace,  the  town 
residence  of  the  Queen,  St.  James'  Palace,  in  which  the  drawing 
rooms  or  receptions  occur,  and  Marlborough  House,  the  residence 
of  the  Prince  of  Wales  ;  Westminster  Hall,  in  which  for  nearly 
eight  hundred  years  the  superior  courts  of  justice  have  held  their 
sittings  ;  the  Horse  Guards  and  the  Admiralty— the  respective 
head  quarters  of  the  army  and  navy  ;    Westminster   School    and 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  29 

Westminster  Abbey  ;  within  a  few  stones'  throw  Lambeth  Palace, 
the  official  residence  of  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury-  On  every 
side  are  the  evidences  that  the  multitudinous  affairs  of  the  British 
Empire  are  here  transacted  ;  that  this  is  the  arena  upon  which 
has  been  solved  the  theory  of  the  British  Constitution  ;  that  here 
her  great  and  enduring  institutions  have  been  moulded  intosh'pe; 
the  arena  where  battles  have  been  fought,  which  if  of  less  thrilling 
interest,  have  not  been  of  less  importance,  in  their  influence  on  the 
affairs  of  men,  than  those  which  follow  the  shock  of  contending 
armies  -the  arena  where  noble  hearts  have  pulsated  and  a  long 
array  of  illustrious  orators  and  statesmen  have  passed,  whose 
names  and  deeds  will  be  gratefully  remembered  wherever  Chris- 
tianity and  civilization  find  an  abiding  place. 

Pursuing  our  course  up  (Constitutional  Hill  we  reach  Hammer- 
smith, and  then  the  long-wished-for  country  of  green  hedges  and 
cultivated  fields.  The  day  was  bright  and  joyous,  a  rich,soft  sun- 
light descended. upon  the  landscape  and  fell  in  golden  streaks 
upon  the  river.  Carried  forward  at  a  brisk  trot  in  the  Putney  'bus 
we  were  soon  in  the  streets  of  the  antique  village  of  Kew.         ^ 

Kew  is  one  of  those  quaint  old  towns,  so  common  to  England, 
abounding  in  the  disorders  of  architecture,  where  are  seen  side  by 
side,  long  low  fronts  and  narrow,  high  gables,  broad  windows, 
with  French  plate  glass  and  narrow  ones  with  diamond  panes, 
some  mullioned,  others  bay  windows  projecting  over  the  walls, 
latticed  piazzas  and  high  porticos,  houses  of  red  brick  and  others 
of  grey  stone,  some  with  one  wing  and  others  with  two  and  where 
two,  most  usually  unlike  ;  some  roofs  that  are  fiat  and  others  steep 
and  the  whole  without  regard  to  congruity,  yet  where  there  is  in 
the  general  aspect  a  certain  harmony  and  decided  picturesque- 
ness. 

Rich  in  its  ancient  historical  reminiscences,  Kew  carries  us  back 
to  the  fantastical  days  of  hoops  and  farthingales,  of  full  bottomed 
wigs  and  snuff  colored  coats,  of  silk  breeches  and  dangling  swords; 
of  pointed  shoes  and  cocked  hats,  all  of  which  were  in  full  vogue 
during  the  earlier  period  of  that  Georgian  era  from  which  these 
far  famed  gardens  date  their  foundation.  Those  were  the  days 
during  which  men  systematically  and  as  a  measure  of  common 
prudence  executed  their  wills  and  bade  farewell  to  their  families 
before  starting  on  the  perilous  journey  from  London  to  Bath; 
when  upon  the  side  of  the  rumbling  stage  coach  were  duly 
enumerated  the  towns  it  would  pass  through  and  the  inns  it  would 
stop  at.  Old  England,  however,  has  passed  away  with  the  stage 
coach,  and  while  she  has  bequeathed  to  us  much  to  be  grateful  for 
and  much  to  admire,  her  work  has  been  done.  It  is  with  young 
England  we  have  to  deal  now — the  England  of  railways  and  tele- 


^O  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

graphs,  of  steam  boats,  of  the  penny  post,  of  gas  lit  cities  and  cheap 
newspapers,  of  lyceuins,  libraries,  etc. 

Crossing  Kew  green  we  saw  in  many  windows  cards  offering 
apartments  to  let.  Wishing  to  know  how  these  compared  in  va- 
rious ways  with  those  of  London,  we  rapped  at  one  of  the  doors, 
and  were  introduced  by  a  dowdy  servant  girl,  her  sleeves  rolled 
up  above  her  elbows  and  her  face  smudged  with  dirt  and  black- 
ened with  smoke,  to  her  mistress,  Mrs.  Jones.  Mrs.  Jones  was 
quickly  discovered  to  be  a  representative  woman  of  her  class,  and 
with  a  real  woman's  volubility.  As  she  conducted  us  throi^gh  the 
house  she  almost  stunned  us  with  a  torrent  of  words  in  which  she 
set  forth  the  advantages  of  Kew  in  general  as  a  place  of  residence 
and  her  edifice  in  particular,  as  the  most  eligible  and  desirable  of 
Kew  lodgmg  houses.  The  impulsive  landlady  went  on  to  declare 
that  she  had  been  uniformly  patronized  by  the  quality,  such  as  Sir 
John  McLeod  and  Lord  Claud  Hamilton, who  came  there  annually 
to  fish  ;  by  the  l^ercys  of  Homedale,  not  the  Homedales  of  Percy, 
a  junior  branch  of  that  ancient  race,  and  that  if  we  came  to  her 
sh#  would  giiarantee  us  every  home  comfort  and  all  reasonable 
luxuries.  Notwithstanding  our  haste  to  see  the  vegetable  prides 
of  Kew,  we  suffered  ourselves  to  be  detained  until  she  had  count- 
ed up  among  the  gentle-folks  she  had  entertained,  a  considerable 
part  of  the  peerage,  and,  what  seemed  to  us  the  larger  moiety  of 
the  landed  gentry. 

The  house,  a  roomy,  rambling  one,  was  ordinary  enough  in  ap- 
pearance and  appointments.  The  lodgings,  however,  were  hight-r 
in  price  than  similar  suites  in  London  Expressing  surprise  at 
this  fact,  she  informed  us  with  an  emphatic  toss  of  her  head, which 
caused  her  cork-screw  curls  to  tremble  in  the  still  air,  as  her  cap 
darted  in  the  direction  of  the  opposite  wall  in  a  parabolic  curve  ; 
that  Kew  was  most  decidedly  a  fashionable  town,  not  so  large  as 
London,  buLjfiy  no  means  small,  and  quite  charming.  "Bt sides," 
said  shfi>i»ftth  a  triumphant  air,  as  she  straightened  herself  up, 
throwing  back  a"'pair  of  square  shoulders  and  advancing  a  protu- 
berant 1  ust,  "I  livejn  the  same  street  with  the  Duchess." 

Incredible  as  it  may  seem  to  American  readers,  a  feeble  impres- 
sion only  was  made  on  our  minds  by  this  earnest  advocate,  and 
we  backed  out  of  the  front  hall  without  having  engaged  lodgings. 

Recrossing  the  green  to  the  Brown  Jug,  a  respectable  looking 
inn,  we  heard  from  the  barmaid  while  despatching  in  the  parlor  a 
glass  of  the  inevitable  'arf  and  'arf;  a  girl  robust  in  figure  and  fresh 
in  complexion — that  Mrs.  Jones  not  only  lived  in  the  same  street, 
but  on  the  same  side  oi  it,  with  the  Dowager  Duchess  of  Cam- 
bridge, and  that  she  was  in  the  habit  of  entertaining  many ''high 
judicial  gents  and  other  official  functionaries."     This  fact  account 


RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES.  3I 

od  at  once  for  the  good  woman's  credit  and  consequence,  for  the 
indi^jnant  toss  of  her  head  and  the  high  price  of  her  apart- 
ments. 

A  rain  coming  on  it  was  decided  that  we  should  pass  the  night 
at  the  Brown  Jug.  After  a  European  repast  in  the  shape  of  a 
"meaty  tea,"  we  established  ourselves  in  a  fireside  chair  and  began 
to  ruminate. 

A  century's  residence  is  by  no  means  necessary  in  the  mother 
country  to  make  the  stranger  acquainted  with  the  abject  servility 
of  the  middle  and  lower  orders  towards  the  nobility,  The  deity 
of  rank  is  absolutely  idolized  by  them.  The  successful  man  of 
business,  be  he  banker,  merchant  or  manufacturer,  considers  no- 
thing more  desirable  than  to  bestow  his  daughter,  she  may  be 
beautiful  and  accomplished,  upon  the  son,  though  an  unworthy 
son,  of  a  Lord.  On  the  other  hand  it  must  be  admitted  that  the 
impecunious  Viscount  is  not  too  proud  to  replenish  his  coffers  by 
an  alliance  with  a  wealthy  tea  dealer,  beer  brewer  or  cotton  spin- 
ner. It  is  a  fair  bargain  and  an  understood  thing  that  the  money 
offsets  the  rank.  The  eagerness,  however,  with  which  the  middle 
classes  pursue  their  high  game,  and  their  pride  at  bringing  it  down, 
is  marvelous.  Few  things  connected  with  the  commercial  classes 
so  much  excites  Republican  surprise  as  this  gross  want  of  self  re- 
spect. That  sense  of  equality  to  which  Americans  are  bred,  finds 
no  place  among  the  inferior  orders  in  Britain.  Instinctively  they 
ko/on  to  it  the  moment  they  are  confronted  by  superior  rank. 
This  obsequiousness  is  peculiar  to  the  shopocracy — as  deeply  im- 
planted in  them  as  the  Sepoy's  abhorrence  of  a  greased  cartridge. 
To  them  a  title  outweighs  all  earthly  considerations.  To  be  pat- 
ronized by  a  Lord  is  a  great  stroke  of  good  luck  and  will  make 
the  fortune  of  a  tradesman,  or  a  green  grocer  or  fish  monger. 
Everybody  is  sure  to  patronize  those  whom  nobility  patronizes. 
To  be  surrounded  by  the  odor  of  aristocracy  is  a  safe  card  for  a 
fortune.  And  this  though  the  ancient  nobility  is  principally  sprung, 
as  they  should  know,  from  the  twenty  thousand  adventurers  who 
landed  at  Hastings  in  ic66  and  of  whom  it  has  been  truly  said: 
*'These  founders  ot'  the  House  of  Lords  were  greedy  and  ferocious 
pirates.  They  were  all  alike,  they  took  everything  they  could 
carry,  they  burned,  harried,  violated,  tortured  and  killed  until 
everything  English  was  brought  to  the  verge  of  ruin.  Such, 
however,  is  the  illusion  of  antiquity  and  wealth,  that  decent  and 
dignified  men  now  existing  boast  their  descent  from  these  filthy 
thieves.  Or  if  you  come  down  to  later  times,  of  which  a  faithful 
record  has  been  left  by  Grammont,  Pepys  and  Evelyn,  from  pros- 
titutes taken  from  the  theatres  and  made  duchesses,  and  their 
bastards,  Dukes  and  Lords," 


32  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

When  a  shopkeeper  has  amassed  a  fortune,  he  retires  to  Ty- 
burnia,  on  the  route  to  the  West-end  or  some  fashionable  water- 
ings place,  and  seeks  the  means  of  introduction  into  a  higher  circle. 
In  a  country  enjoyinj^  the  commercial  prosperity  of  England,  the 
number  of  such  aspirants  is  laro;e,  and  they  often  find  it  no  easy 
matter  to  accomplish  their  wishes.  The  affluent  "upper  ten"  are 
ever  on  the  alert  to  head  off  intruders  and  preserve  the  exclusive- 
ness  of  patrician  realms.  Relying  solely  upon  their  wealth,  the 
new  rich  endeavor  to  acquire,  through  its  instrumentality,  the 
"open  sesame."  It  is  their  only  card  ;  luckily  it  is  a  trump,  and 
the  best  of  trumps — the  long  trump.  In  the  end  they  always 
succeed.  The  advertisements  in  the  supplement  to  the  7/'w<f.9  fur- 
nish many  striking  evidences  of  these  facts.  Among  the  more 
recent  we  have  seen  is  the  following  :  "Home  offered  free  of  ex- 
pense. A  married  lady  of  good  family  and  highly  connected, 
offers  to  receive  as  her  guest  for  the  winter  season  or  longer,  any 
lady  or  young  lady  of  good  birth,  who  in  sole  return  would  pro- 
cure introduction  for  them  to  the  leading  society  of  either  Dover 
or  Leamington.  All  traveling  expenses  and  further  advantages 
paid.  A  happy  home  offered.  Full  particulars,  with  the  best 
and  highest  references  given.  Address,  L.  V.,  Portnjan  Library, 
Baker  street,  Portman  Square,  London,  W." 

The  same  feeling,  in  a  modified  forn),  shows  itself  in  all  classes 
— even  in  the  Peerage,  where  the  gouty  old  Baron  turns  up  his 
humor-eaten  nose  and  his  watery  eyes  in  contempt  at  modern  de- 
generacy and  the  new  creations — the  new  Peerages. 

In  the  piping  times  of  peace  the  principal  avenue  to  success  is 
through  the  law — a  lawyer  of  eminent  learning  and  ability  rarely 
failing  to  make  his  way  into  Parliament  and  thence  to  the  peerage. 
Two  cases  of  the  kind  occurred  during  our  residence  in  England. 
Sir.  Wm.  Vernon  Harcourt,  who  was  a  rising  barrister  in  1861, 
(and  who,  by  the  way,  married  a  daughter  of  the  American  histo- 
rian, John  L.  Motley,)  ten  years  later  was  a  Member  of  Parlia- 
ment for  Oxford  and  Solicitor  General  And  Sir  Hardinge  Gif- 
ford,  who  was  little  known  beyond  his  Inn  of  Court  in  1861,  was 
in  1875  Member  of  Parliament  for  Guilford  and  is  the  present 
Solicitor  General.  These  conspicuous  men,  who  owe  their  success 
to  their  bright  intellectual  endowments,  their  erudition  and  perse- 
vering industry,  are  sneered  at  by  the  older  Peers,  who  supercil- 
iously style  them  "Law  lords."  They  seem  to  have  forgotten  that 
the  power,  wealth,  and  influence  of  a  country  lie  net  so  much  in 
the  higher  as  in  the  middle  classes;  not  with  the  aristocratic  few, 
but  with  the  plebian  many.  What  true  man  is  there,  however 
great  his  pride  of  race,  who  would  not  rather  owe  his  position  to 
his  powers  of  heart  and  intellect,  rather  than  to  the  mere  accident 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENSES.  33 

of  existence  which  brought  hiin  into  life  as  the  heir  of  a  nobleman 
instead  of  the  son  of  a  peasant.  That  class  designated  more  par- 
ticularly as  our  ancient  nobility — those  descended  from  the  first 
Norman  invaders  or  old  Saxon  nobles,  are  in  general  very  proud 
of  their  descent,  and  most  of  them  disdain  all  familiar  intercourse 
with  any  of  those  among  their  fellow  subjects,  whom  they  think  a 
degree  below  themselves,  or  if  they  condescend  to  speak  to  them, 
and  admit  them  to  some  kind  of  familiarity,  their  condescension  is 
such  an  odd  mixture  of  urbanity  and  haughtiness,  that  it  proves 
very  disgusting  to  men  of  any  parts  and  spirit.  During  oiir  first 
visit  to  London  in  1851-52,  the  writer  had  the  pleasure  to  become 
acquainted  with  a  "city  magnate,"  Mr.  Jones  Lloyd — one  of  those 
enterprising  merchants  whose  operations  extend  to  the  farthest 
corners  of  the  earth.  On  his  return  to  London  ten  years  later,  he 
was  much  gratified  to  find  Mr.  Loyd's  great  merits  and  success 
had  been  recognized,  and  that  he  had  been  raised  to  the  Peerage, 
as  Lord  Overstone.  We  were  not  a  little  disgusted,  from  time  to 
time,  to  hear  these  illiberal  and  narrow-minded  old  fogies  still 
haughtily  speaking  of  Lord  Overstone  as  Jones  Lloyd.  Men  like 
Lord  Overstone  smile  at  such  impotent  malice,  while  the  mass  of 
the  people  regard  it  as  "all  right  as  matters  go"  and  are  ever 
raking  among  the  musty  records  of  the  Herald's  Office  to  trace 
their  origin  to  some  one  of  the  above  mentioned  twenty  thousand 
Norman  adventurers.  A  rage  for  titles  exists  and  where  the  title 
of  a  woman  is  higher  than  that  of  her  husband,  it  is  not  dropped, 
but  ever  paraded  in  contrast  with  his,  which  is  construed,  "how 
wonderfully  I  have  condescended  to  marry  him." 

In  every  paper  you  see,  during  the  season,  such  announcements 
as  the  following  taken  from  the  Ti^nes  :  "Frances,  Countess  Wal- 
dergrave  and  the  Right  Hon.  Chichester  Fortesque,  M.  P.  (her 
fourth  husband,  her  title  being  derived  from  her  first)  received  a 
select  party  at  dinner  on  yesterday,"  and  "The  Countess  of  Guil- 
ford and  Mr.  Elliot  will  leave  town  on  Wednesday  next  for  the 
Continent" — Mr.  Elliott  being  her  second  husband. 

If  a  man  belongs  to  an  order  of  Knighthood,  he  never  forgets 
to  sign  after  his  name  letters  by  which  he  is  known,  as  John  Bull, 
C.  B.,  meaning  Companion  of  the  Bath,  and  Richard  Roe,  K.  G., 
Knight  of  the  Garter. 

A  country  gentleman  informed  us  that  it  was  common  in  the 
rural  districts  for  wives  of  Members  of  Parliament  to  have  engraved 
upon  their  cards,  "  W.  M.  F* ,"  meaning  wife  of  a  Member  of  Par- 
liament, but  as  no  case  of  the  kind  came  under  our  observation, 
we  must  presume  that  he  was  indulging  in  chafif.  A  dingy  look- 
ing dealer  in  milk  and  cheese  opposite  our  lorigings  sent  us  his 
card    which  ran  as  follows:  ''Harry  Patmore,  P.  A.  R.  F^     Not 


34  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

understanding  the  meaning  of  these  letters,  and  presuming  that 
be  could  hardly  belong  to  a  learned  society  or  the  most  recent 
batch  of  new  creation Sy  we  had  recourse  to  our  landlady  who 
solved  the  mystery  by  explaining  that  the  title  he  bore  was  "Pur- 
veyor of  Asses  Milk  to  the  Royal  Family." 

The  daily  papers  chronicle  the  most  trifling  incidents  connected 
with  the  Royal  family,  so  that  they  may  be  said  to  live  constantly 
in  the  full  gaze  of  the  public — to  have  no  private  life  whatever,  if 
the  Prince  of  Wales  should  come  to  town  for  a  day  from  his  coun- 
try seat,  Sandringham,  the  details  are  gathered  by  the  penny  a- 
liners  and  Jenkinses  of  the  press  and  all  the  circumstances  of  the 
journey  to  and  fro  are  minutely  detailed,  as  if  the  route  he  took 
to  the  railway  station,  and  the  persons  by  whom  he  was  attended, 
were  matters  of  the  greatest  public  importance.  The  public  is 
informed  that  his  carriages  were  close  and  not  open  ones  ;  that 
the  carriages  on  arriving  at  the  station  did  not  draw  up  at  the 
public  entrance,  but  passed  on  to  the  Queen's  priVale  waiting 
room  ;  that  there  was  a  platform,  and  moreover  a  platform  cover- 
ed with  crimson  cloth,  and  that  the  Royal  party  alighted  on  said 
platform — that  the  Prince  and  Princess  appeared  in  excellent 
health  and  spirits,  and  that  instead  of  passing  on  from  the  platform 
to  the  waiting  room  without  condescending  to  notice  the  specta- 
tors, they  actually  "bowed  very  graciously  to  the  bystanders  " 
The  dress  of  the  Princess  is  described  with  the  minuteness  and 
paiticularity  of  a  mantaumaker,  and  the  Prince,  we  are  told,  wore 
a  wide  awake  instead  of  his  usual  chimney-pot  hat.  The  names 
ol  the  officials  who  received  the  Royal  party  on  the  crimson  cloth 
platform  and  escorted  it  therefrom  are  duly  recorded,  and  before 
the  perilous  journey  is  commenced  the  farther  additional  informa- 
tion is  vouchsafed  that  the  "State  saloon  was  placed  in  the  centre 
of  the  passenger  train,"  and  that  notwithstanding  these  tremend- 
ous preparations,  "the  train  left  at  the  usual  hour,"  and  travelling 
by  certain  stations  with  its  illustrious  inmates — the  only  stations 
by  which  it  could  pass — arrived  at  the  usual  hour  at  the  London 
terminus,  where  we  are  further  told,  every  preparation  was  made 
by  the  railway  authorities  for  the  reception  ot  the  Royal  party, 
who  are  said  to  have  stood  the  fatiguing  journey  of  two  hours 
remarkably  well.  Every  incident  is  now  again  detailed  how  they 
left  the  train,  what  carriages  they  entered;  through  what  streets 
they  passed  ;  how  his  Royal  Highness,  seeing  a  chimney  on  fire, 
expressed  the  opinion  that  the  public  health  required  that  all  fam- 
ilies residing  in  the  Metropolis  should  adopt  the  Derby  patent  for 
consuming  their  own  smoke;  how  the  public  assembled  in  front 
of  Marlborough  Howse  to  catch  a  glimpse  of  the  future  king  and 
queen,  and  how  they  were  disappomted  by  the  Royal  party  which 


RAMBLING     RKMINISCENCES.  35 

turned  up  Piccadilly  and  down  Constitution  Hill  and  alighted  at 
Buckingham  F^alace. 

In  extenuation  of  this  snobbery,  the  stranger  is  told  that  these 
published  details  are  collected  by  the  newspaper  reporters  from 
footmen,  butlers  and  kitchen  maids,  and  are  not  cominunicated  by 
the  "noble  lords  and  ladies"  themselves  ;  that  he  must  not  fall  into 
the  error  of  making  them  responsible  for  the  prying  curiosity  and 
vulgar  weakness  of  the  Jenkinses  of  the  journals  who  believe  that 
the  human  race  is  divided  into  men,  women  and  the  British  peer- 
age. An  explanation  doubtless  true  in  the  main,  as  we  regret  to 
see  in  our  country  a  similar  system  o{  espoinaQ^e  growing  up,  and 
the  private  gatherings  at  our  houses  published  to  the  world,  and 
the  remarks  even  of  our  guests  not  unfrequently  passed  in  review 
in  some  sheet  which  lives  on  the  profits  of  what  is  styled  in  the 
phraseology  of  the  day,  sensational  journalism. 

Whatever  truth  there  may  be  in  the  Britton's  explanation  of 
these  peculiarities,  the  stranger  cannot  be  long  in  the  country  with- 
out observing  that  there  is  an  extravagant  homage  paid  to  rank 
and  title.  It  is  the  weak  point  in  the  English  character.  What- 
ever they  may  say,  the  fact  is  undeniable,  they  love  a  lord.  Dur- 
ing our  protracted  residence  in  Britain  we  have  rarely  known  a 
public  meeting  of  any  kind  without  a  lord  in  the  chair.  One  of 
the  sacred  animals  is,  aftc-r  the  custom  of  certain  eastern  people, 
always  placed  in  the  van.  Even  the  Scientific  Societies  insist 
upon  having  a  lord  for  President.  The  Royal  Geographical  had 
Lord  Ashburton  for  its  presiding  officer  for.  years.  It  docs  not 
matter  to  them  whether  he  has  or  has  not  attainments  — he  has  a 
title — that's  what  they  want,  not  the  booby  who  sports  it.  Science 
does  not  prostitute  itself  to  ignorance,  only  to  rank.  No  institu- 
tion of  learning-  school  or  college — is  founded  without  having 
titled  patrons  or  visitors  to  satisfy  the  popular  requirements  These 
are  selccied  from  among  the  aristocracy,  whatever  their  want  of 
qualifications,  the  more  glaring  the  want  of  qualifications,  the 
higher  sounding  must  be  the  title.  The  tide  of  Prince  or  Duke 
will  cover  with  the  maiitle  of  charity  even  Egyptian  ignorance. 
There  is  no  learned  or  literary  society  in  England  which  would  not 
be  proud  to  have  a  Prince  or  Royal  Duke  in  the  chair,  so  deeply 
rooted  is  that  popular  veneration  for  the  consecrated  race. 

The  injurious  effects  of  this  prevalent  feeling  is  seen  in  the  con- 
duct and  bearing  of  many  of  the  nobility,  and  it  is  only  strange 
that  it  does  not  ruin  the  whole  race  A  man  has  very  little  chance 
of  knowing  how  to  conduct  himself  in  this  world  who  has  from 
his  infancy  been  the  object  of  slavish  adulation.  First  worsWp- 
ped  by  his  nurse,  then  flattered  by  grooms,  stable  boys,  peasants 
and  hangers  on  of  the  family,  then  todied  by  tutors,  he  enters  col- 


36  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

lege  only  to  find  his  caste  held  sacred,  and  when  he  enters  the 
world  he  finds  himself  delivered  over  to  the  adulation  of  the  en- 
tire public.  It  is  not  surprising  that  they  are  sometimes  arrogant. 
If  |>eoplc  prostrate  themselves  before  them  why  may  not  the  peo- 
ple expect  to  be  trampled  on?  It  is  not  the  fault  of  the  lord,  but 
of  the  people. 

Much  to  be  regretted  is  the  fact  that  instead  of   worshipping 
rank,  class  or  caste  as  do  the  H in  loos  and  Brahmins,  they  do  not 
confine  their  reverence  to  purity  of  character,  great  thoughts  and 
noble  deeds.     Here  all  the  world    could  unite    with  them.     The 
popular  reception  or  value  set  upon  a  title   by  the  lower  orders 
gives  the  title  its  value — if  people  ceased  to    worship  it,    no  one 
would  desire  it.     But  no  sooner  is  a  man  invested  with  a  title, got 
a  handle  to  his  name,  than  he   finds  himself  invested  with   new 
power — a  power  that  does  not  reside  in  himself,  but  in  the  hearts 
of  those  who  fawn    upon  him.      It   is   the   aristocratic  spirit  and 
sympathy  which  pervades  the  entire  mass  of  society  which  gives 
the  aristocracy  their  power. — The  English  are  at  heart  aristocratic 
and  never   cease  struggling  after  its  honors.     They  spend  their 
lives,  giving  up  comfort  and  happiness,  to  reach   its  ranks,  or  that 
their  children  may  do  so.     The  growth  of  centuries,  this  spirit  is 
supposed  to  hive  had  its  origin  in  the  Norman   conquest  and  the 
feudal  system.     However  this  may  be,   ages    must    pass  before  it 
can  be  eradicated.     The  feudal   system  still   exists  in  a  modified 
form  in  England.     The  law  ol  primogeniture — the  accumulation 
of  vast  landed  estatesin  a  few  hands,  the  laws  of  entail,  &c.,  which 
have  been  thrown  off  by  all  Europe,    by  America,    and  by    the 
English  colonies  throughout  the  world,   still  continue  in  force  in 
the  sea-girt  island.     The  laws  are  still    made    by  the  aristocratic 
few,  for  the  benefit  of  the  patrician  classes.     The  privileges  and 
immunities  of  this  class  being  found  in  ancient  usage  and  the  cus- 
toms of  bygone  ages,  they  cultivate  a  reverence  for  the  past,  dis- 
parage everything  new  or  modern,  and    thus  seek  to  strengthen 
their  position  by  encouraging  the  growth  in  the  minds  and  heaits 
of  the    people,  of  sentiments  ot   respect    for  the    law-givers  of  a 
semi-barbaric  age  in  which  these  privileges  had  their  origin.  This 
well  known  sentiment,  we  may  add,  is  turned  to  amusing  effect  in 
the  new  operetta,  styled  "  77?^  Pifat<s  of  Pnizance''  which  is  now 
being  successfully  performed  at  the  Fifih  Avenue  Theatre,  New 
York.     In  an  encounter  between  the  pirates   and  the  police,  the 
latter  are  conquered.     The  condition  of  the  police  seems  hopeless 
but  the  sergeant  is  not  without  resource. 

Serg. — To  gain  a  brief  advantage  you've  contrived, 

But  your  proud  triumph  will  not  be  long  lived  ! 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  37 

King. — Don't  say  you're  orphans,  for  we  know  that  game. 
Serg. — On  your  allegiance  we've  a  strong  claim. 

We  charge  you  yield  in  Queen  Victoria's  name  ! 

This  is  an  appeal  that  no  Engh'shman,  not  even  a  pirate,  can 
resist.     The  King  and  his  crew  at  once  surrender. 

King — We  yield  at  once  with  humbled  mein. 

Because,  with  all  our  faults,  we  love  our  Queen. 

The  General  orders  them  to  be  marched  off  in  custody,  when 
Ruth  enters : 

Ruth, — One  moment;  let  me  tell  you  who  they  are — 
They  are  no  members  of  the  common  throng, 
They  are  all  noblemen  who  have  gone  wrong ! 

This  announcement  has  an  electrical  effect  on  the  General  and 
the  police,  who  at  once  kneel  in  homage  at  the  feet  of  their  late 
foes. 

■    General. — No  Englishmen  unmoved  that  statement  hears, 

Because  with  all  our  faults,  we  love  our  Plouse  of  Peers. 

This  is  no  overdrawn  picture,  yet  we  find  a  certain  class  of 
British  tourists  in  this  country,  with  true  Cockney  audacity,  ridi- 
culing what  they  style  the  American's  love  for  titles.  These  carp- 
ing faultfinders  are  offended  with  the  existence  of  military  and 
naval  titles  in  a  countrv  uncurst  with  a  standing  army  and  an  in- 
vincible armament.  They  forget  that  we  have  a  bellicose  militia. 
We  are  willing  to  admit  that  the  average  American  is  not  alto- 
gether without  something  of  the  "Britisher's"  love  of  gewgaws, 
nor  are  "his  sisters,  his  cousins  or  his  aunts,"  but  nobody  in  this 
country  attaches  the  slightest  importance  to  these  militia  titles. 
They  do  not  enhance  the  credit  or  consequence  of  the  persons 
who' bear  them,  are  often  conferred  in  merriment  by  boon  com- 
panions. But  if  we  are  to  take  as  true  the  moral  of  the  operetta, 
so  recently  and  admirably  represented  by  amateurs  in  Staunton, 
we  could  hardly  be  charged  with  an  ill-regulated  and  false  ambi- 
tion, if  we  ranked  the  Admiral  of  one  of  our  yacht  squadrons  with 
the  "ruler  of  the  Queen's  navee." 

But  whither  are  we  wandering?  What  has  become  of  Kew  ? 
Revenons  7ious  a  nos  mouton. 

The  pleasure  gardens  of  Kew  constitute  its  chief  attractions, 
though  many  of  the  disciples  of  Isaac  Walton  frequent  the  Thames 
hereabouts,  pursuing  their  favorite  pastime.  These  famous  gar- 
dens have  been  improved  with  much  taste,  and  show,  notwith- 
standing the  level  surface  originally,   a   considerable  variety   of 


3B  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

scenery.  The  botanic  gardens  are  noted  for  their  exotic  treas- 
ures collected  from  every  part  of  the  world,  which  flourish  in  the 
Palm  house,  the  largest  glass  structure  we  have  seen,  save  the 
Crystal  Palace,  "unconscious  of  a  less  propitious  clime." 

On  entering  the  gardens  from  the  village,  one  of  the  first  objects 
which  attracts  attention  is  the  willow,  an  offspring  from  that  which 
overshadows  the  tomb  of  Napoleon  at  St.  Helena.  We  were  sur- 
prised to  find  at  this  early  season,  in  full  bloom  in  the  open  air, 
many  flowers  of  vivid  hue ;  scarlet  geraniums,  crocuses,  yellow 
callecolaries,  hyacinths  and  heliotropes. 

Among  the  rare  trees  pointed  out  to  us  were  2,000  Chinconas, 
from  which  the  sulphate  of  quinine  is  manufactured.  For  some 
years  prior  to  i860,  the  British  government  was  successfully  en- 
gaged in  the  task  of  supplying  these  trees  to  the  East  Indies. 
They  are  produced  at  Kewfrom  seed  brought  from  South  America. 
Much  fear  was  felt  of  the  entire  destruction  of  the  tree  in  South 
America,  when  the  British  government  hastened  to  fit  out  an  ex- 
pedition under  one  of  its  ablest  admirals,  with  C.  R.  Markham  as 
botanist,  to  proceed  to  Chili  and  Peru  to  collect  trees  and  the  seed 
of  the  tree,  as  a  means  of  preserving  and  propagating  it  in  its  own 
equatorial  and  other  fever  stricken  colonies.  These  labors  have 
been  crowned  with  gratifying  success,  and  the  day  is  not  far  dis- 
tant when  the  price  of  quinine,  so  expensive  now,  will  be  within 
reach  of  the  poorest  sufferer.  Worthy  of  all  praise,  we  trust  this 
enlightened  policy  may  be  pursued  by  the  authorities  of  our  Gulf 
States.  The  climate  of  the  cotton  States  is  doubtless  well  adapted 
to  the  growth  of  the  Chincona  tree  ;  it  is  certainly  prolific  in  the 
diseases  in  which  quinine  is  taken  with  good  effect. 

From  imperial  Kew  we  passed  on  to  Richmond  and  soon 
reached  the  terraced  road  on  the  hill  which  leads  directly  to  the 
Park.  This  road,  lined  and  shaded  by  great  oaks  in  the  gnarled 
majesty  of  old  age,  commands  an  extended  and  beautiful  view  of 
the  Valley  of  the  Thames,  which  is  covered  with  country  seats, 
farm  houses  and  villages.  The  line  of  beauty  was  never  more 
faithfully  depicted  in  landscape  than  by  the  course  of  the  broad 
and  beautiful  river.  So  regular  are  its  windings,  so  just  are  the 
length  and  curvature  of  its  sweeps,  and  so  well  proportioned  are 
•its  width  and  the  space  it  occupies  in  the  rich  valley  through 
which  it  flows,  so  tranquil  and  lake-like  is  the  surface  of  the 
water  that  at  first'sight  we  cannot  divest  ourselves  of  the  idea 
that  nature  has  called  in  the  assistance  of  art,  and  has  ornamented 
the  scenery  beneath  us  with  reference  to  the  most  approved  prin- 
ciples of  landscape  gardening. 

In  a  few  minutes  more,  we  entered  the  celebrated  Star  and 
Garter  Inn,  which  is  situated  just  outside  of  the  main  entrance  to 


RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES.  39 

the  Park,  and  after  indulging  in  some  of  the  expensive  dainties 
dispensed  at  this  establishment,  leaving  our  baggage,  we  set  off 
for  a  stroll  in  the  enchanting  scenes  of  the  park,  more  than  1,000 
acres  of  which  are  covered  by  a  dense  forest.  From  Oliver's 
mount,  in  the  park,  St.  Paul's  Cathedral  and  Windsor  Castle  may 
be  seen  on  a  fair  day.  Yet  you  cannot  penetrate  a  half  mile  into 
the  dark  recesses  of  the  forest  without  feeling  that  you  have  taken 
leave  of  civilization  and  the  haunts  of  men. 

The  park  occupies  a  portion  of  the  ancient  hunting  grounds  of 
William  the  Norman  and  his  regal  successors  for  centuries,  and 
the  sites  of  many  of  the  lodges  of  the  rangers,  around  which  are 
strewn  masses  of  ruins,  are  still  pointed  out  to  the  stranger.  How 
are  times  changed  !  The  days  of  Robin  Hood  and  his  merry  men 
are  gone ;  the  sound  of  the  hunting  horn  no  longer  awakes  the 
echoes  in  the  solitudes  of  the  few  forests  which  have  survived 
the  desolations  of  centuries  :  the  swineherd  no  more  attends 
his  charge  under  the  mighty  oaks,  and  the  lady  of  high  degree, 
attended  by  her  knights  and  retainers,  cannot  now  be  seen,  can- 
tering on  her  palfrey  with  falcon  on  her  fair  hand  awaiting  the 
flight  of  the  heron.  The  great  law  of  change  has  acted  here  as 
elsewhere.  Old  things  have  passed  away  and  all  traces  of  them 
are  rapidly  disappearing.  No  where  more  so  than  in  the  vicinity 
of  London.  Buildings  are  starting  up  in  every  direction  and  anon 
speculative  builders  and  joint  stock  companies  will  overlay  beau- 
tiful Richmond  with  brick  and  plaster.  Such  is  the  progress,  the 
utilization  of  the  age.  The  lovers  of  the  philosophical  science  of 
esthetics  must  unite  to  preserve  the  beautiful  and  sublime  in  na- 
ture and  art,  or  both  will  perish  in  the  din  of  machinery  and  the 
smoke  of  factories. 


40  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 


CHAPTER  IV. 


FURTHER  EXPERIENCES  OF   RICHMOND — GYPSIES — JOHN 
EARL    RUSSELL,  &C. 


While  sojourning  in  Richmond,  we  wandered  on  one  occasion  to 
the  outskirts  of  the  Park  looking  over  the  waste  of  an  adjoining 
common,  inhaling  with  pleasant  exhiliaration  the  unbreathed  air  of 
the  heath.  Soon  our  attention  was  attracted  by  a  thin,  vapory 
column  of  smoke  ascending  from  a  ravine,  about  two  hundred 
yards  distant.  Approaching  the  spot,  we  saw  a  ragged  tent, 
around  which  several  swart,  sun-burnt  children  were  playing.  On 
the  opposite  side  of  the  tent  stood  a  shaggy  pony  yoked  to  a 
rickety  cart.  Several  men  were  busy  packing  away  goods  and 
chattels  belonging  to  the  party,  which  was  evidently  about  to  strike 
tent  and  be  off.  We  recognized  them  at  once  as  a  party  of  gyp- 
sies. Our  appearance  seemed  anything  than  agreeable  to  these 
Bohemians ;  the  children  scampered  off,  while  the  men  appeared 
perfectly  unconscious  of  our  presence.  An  old  hag  hobbled  from 
the  tent  at  this  embarrassed  moment,  her  dishevelled  hair  stream- 
ing over  her  back  and  shoulders,  her  glassy  eyes  distilling  rheum, 
and  introduced  herself  by  asking  if  we  wished  to  have  our  for- 
tunes told.  She  accompanied  this  question  with  the  encouraging 
remark  "that  our  faces  were  lucky."  Declining  to  appeal  to  the 
fates  upon  the  question  of  the  future,  we  scattered  a  few  pennies 
among  the  children,  who  were  momentarily  becoming  bolder  and 
lessening  the  distance  which  divided  us.  The  unsympathetic  men 
who  witnessed  what  was  going  on  from  the  corners  of  their  furi- 
tive  eyes,  now  advanced,  as  if  we  were  friends,  and  became  as 
amicable  and  communicative  as  could  be  desired.  Our  intimacy 
increased  rapidly.  In  a  half  hour  we  ascertained  that  they  had 
no  accurate  knowledge  of  their  own  origin  and  history,  that  there 
was  nothing  peculiar  to  the  habits  of  this  particular  party — that 
they  were  simply  common-place  strollers. 

This  singular  and  unhappy  race,  for  it  is  unhappy,  as  can  be 
seen  from  the  expression  oif  vacuity  and  melancholy  in  their  faces, 
is  generally  believed  to  have  had  its  origin  in  Hindostan  where 
they  belonged  to  the  lowest  class  of  Indians.  They  are  supposed 
to  have  taken  to  flight  early  in  the  15th  century  when  India  was 
ravaged  by  Timur  Bey  for  the  purpose  of  spreading  the  Mahom- 


RAMBLING    REMINISCEXSES.  4^ 

etan  religion,  and  thousands  were  put  to  death.  Their  exit  was 
through  the  Southern  Persian  Gulf  to  the  mouth  of  the  Euphra- 
tes, thence  to  Bassora  into  the  great  desert  of  Arabia,  afterwards 
into  Arabia  Petrea  and  so  into  Egypt  by  the  Isthmus  of  Suez. 
They  claim,  however,  to  be  Egyptians  and  account  for  their  vaga- 
bond life  by  referring  it  to  a  judgment  of  God  upon  their  fore- 
fathers who  refused  to  entertam  the  Virgin  Mary  and  Jesus,  when 
they  fled  into  their  country.  Every  effort  to  conform  them  to  the 
usages  of  civilization  and  systematic  labor  has  proved  futile.  They 
adhere  to  their  wandering,  almost  savage  mode  of  life,  picking  up 
a  scanty  support  by  petty  thieving,  peddling,  tinkering,  jugglery, 
legerdemain,  fortune-telling  and  general  cheatery.  Wherever  their 
camp  fires  are  seen  glimmering  at  night  there  are  sure  to  be  twist- 
ed necks  and  vacant  nests  in  neighboring  hen-roosts.  Among 
themselves  they  speak  a  language  of  their  own,  which  is  not  the 
slang  of  thieves,  but  the  language  of  Romany,  which  has  sprung 
from  the  Sanscript  and  the  Zend,  an  ancient  Persian  dialect.  A 
dictionary  of  this  tongue  has  been  prepared  and  the  Bible  transla- 
ted into  the  idiom  by  Barrow.  But  their  language  is  on  the  de--, 
cline  and  the  race  passing  away.  The  number  in  England  does 
not  now  exceed  15,000  and  as  the  commons  are  enclosed  and  the 
land  brought  into  cultivation,  they  are  gradually  losing  the  spots 
on  which  they  have  so  long  pitched  their  tents  and  lighted  their 
camp-fires.  In  some  sections  of  the  country  in  both  England  and 
Scotland,  particularly  in  the  latter,  they  have  intermarried  with  the 
rural  population  and  become  much  assimilated  in  manners  and 
customs.  When  about  to  leave,  one  of  the  girls  was  brought  for-, 
ward  (she  was  not  over  fifteen  years  of  age)  and  sang  with  consid- 
erable taste  and  power  "The  Gypsy's  Tent,"  commencing  as  fol- 
lows : 

'"Our  fire  on  the  turf,  and  our  tent  'neath  a  tree — 

Carousing  by  moonlight,  how  merry  are  we  ! 

Let  the  lord  boast  his  castle,  the  baron  his  hall, 

But  the  house  of  the  gypsy  is  widest  of  all. 

We  may  shout  o'er  our  cups,  and  laugh  loud  as  we    will, 

Till  echo  rings  back  from  wood,  welkin,  and  hill; 

No  joys  seem  to  us  like  the  joys  which  are  lent 

To  the  wanderer's  life  and  the  gypsy's  tent." 

Rewarding  the  sun-burnt  denizen  of  nature  with  a  few  pence, 
we  left  by  a  path  leading  to  Pembroke  Lodge. 

When  visiting  Scotland  in  1852,  we  had  the  pleasure  to  meet 
Lord  John  Russell,  who  had  recently  resigned  the  seals  of  office 
as  Premier.  He  was  driven  to  this  course  by  the  unpopularity  of 
his  ecclesiastical  titles  bill,  and  the  secession  of  his    old   colleague, 


42  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

Viscount  Palmerston.  Agg^rieved  at  the  course  of  events,  he  had 
sought  in  the  bracing  air  and  marvelous  variety  of  scenery  in  Cal- 
edonia, some  relief  from  the  bitterness  and  melancholy  which 
seized  upon  him  as  his  policy  failed;  his  old  friends  dropped  off, 
and  enemies  arose  out  of  the  darkness,  as  pigmies  wax  bold  when 
a  giant  falls. 

An  admirer  of  his  liberal  principles,  political  and  religious,  like 
a  few  of  his  British  party  friends,  who  loved  him  well  and  stood 
staunchly  by  him  to  the  last,  in  good  and  evil  report,  we  never 
wavered  in  our  respect  for  Lord  John.  His  course  from  1861-65, 
when  Foreign  Secretary,  did  not  meet  our  approval  in  so  far  as  it 
referred  to  America's  relations  with  Great  Britain.  At  this  period, 
when  disappointed  and  irritated  at  his  management  of  the  foreign 
office,  in  connection  with  American  affairs,  we  spoke  of  his  Lord- 
ship in  far  from  complimentary  terms.  It  was  unbecoming  in  us 
and  unjust  to  him.  His  foreign  policy  was  then,  in  our  opinion, 
liable  to  grave  objections,  whether  considered  with  reference  to 
British  or  American  interests.  Time  has  entirely  changed 
this  opinion.  Now,  that  there  is  no  longer  passion  to  cloud  the 
reason,  may  the  manes  of  the  deceased  statesman  be  appeased  by 
this  frank  avowal. 

During  the  many  years  that  we  were  on  one  side  of  the  Atlantic 
and  Earl  Rtissell  upon  the  other,  our  time  occupied  with  private 
affairs,  and  he  controlling  with  consummate  ability  the  destinies  of 
the  British  Empire,  we  never  lost  sight  of  him.  Immediately  on 
our  return  to  Europe  in  1861,  we  met  him  again,  not  through  re- 
lations established  with  the  British  Foreign  Office  by  Mr.  Yancey 
or  Col.  Mann,  then  resident  agents  of  the  Confederacy  in  London, 
but  through  Sir  William  and  Lady  Hutt,  with  whom  we  had  form- 
ed cordial  relations,  which  soon  ripened  into  affectionate  friendship. 
For  months  during  the  season,  we  met  him  almost  daily  at  the 
houses  of  mutual  friends.  Sir  William  was  a  member  of  the  Cabi- 
net, being  Vice  President  of  the  board  of  trade  and  M.  P.  for 
Gibside,  and  the  life  long  friend  of  Lord  John.  Lady  Hutt  was  a 
member  of  the  Walpole  family,  and  thus  a  cousin  of  Lady 
Francis  Russell,  the  wife  of  Earl  Russell's  younger  brother.  Lord 
Francis  Russell,  R.  N.,  and  daughter  of  the  late  Rev. 
Algernon  Peyton,  D.  D.,  Dean  of  Ely,  by  his  wife,  Lady 
Mary  Walpole,  daughter  of  Horatio.  Earl  of  Oxford.  Lady 
Hutt's  connection  with  the  Bedford  family,  and  her  kinship  to  the 
Peytons,  caused  the  Hutts  to  take  no  small  interest  in  us,  whicli 
they  exhibited  at  this  time  and  during  the  long  period  of  our  so- 
journ in  England,  by  innumerable  acts  of  hospitality  and  kindness. 
Lady  Hutt  always  claimed  us  as  an  'American  cousin,'  a  claim  which 
we  good  humoredly  allowed  without  an  appeal  to  family  records. 


RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES.  43 

Their  disinterested  friendship  caused  us  to  feel  much  less  solitary 
and  more  secure  than  would  otherwise  have  been  possible,  and 
contributed  much  to  the  pleasure  of  our  sojourn  in  Enprland,  and 
to  our  travels  on  the  continent,  when  we  crossed  the  channel  to- 
gether to  enjoy  an  "outing"  in  beautiful  France. 

In  another  place  we  have  spoken  of  Earl  Russell  as  an  eminent 
man,  author,  statesman  and  diplomatist,  but  better  acquaintance 
with  hini  considerably  modified  our  early  impressions.  We  had 
recently  visited  him — a  vfsit  the  details  of  which  we  shall  spare 
the  reader  who  cannot  be  much  interested  in  the  way  in  which 
one  gentleman  meets  another  in  his  family,  or  in  which  a  man  eats 
his  dinner  with  the  assistance  of  half  a  dozen  footmen  and  a  butler. 
This  visit  to  Richmond,  however,  furnishes  the  opportunity  for  a 
more  extended  notice  of  him  than  has  appeared  in  "The  American 
Crisis,"  and  which  few  men  more  richly  deserve.  We  can  give 
the  salient  points  in  his  character  and  career  very  much  as  we  re- 
ceived them  from  Sir  William  Hutt  and  others,  partly  now  and 
partly  at  subsequent  periods. 

After  his  last  retirement  from  office,  Earl  Russell  took  up  his 
Residence  at  Pembroke  Lodge,  in  Richmond  Park,  which  was 
granted  to  him  for  life  by  favor  of  the  Queen.  *  Since  he  has  led  a 
secluded  life,  taking  little  interest  in  what  is  said  or  done  by  the 
outside  world,  and  had  perhaps  less  knowledge  of  the  general 
public  and  of  the  men  who  most  influence  their  fellows,  than  any 
political  leader  has  had  during  the  present  century.  Here  he  was 
passing  his  old  age,  hale,  hearty,  affable,  resigned  to  its  condition, 
thoroughly  experienced,  philosophic,  full  of  judgment,  learning 
and  sobriety.  It  is  here  that  he  met,  during  the  recesses  of  Parlia- 
ment, the  small  coterie  of  whom  he  was  the  especial  favorite  ;  and 
the  leaders  of  that  old  whig  party  of  which  he  was  at  once  the 
historian,  the  centre  and  the  traditional  idol.  Few,  if  any,  of  the 
public  men  of  the  country  have  been  more  mixed  up  with  the 
political  affairs  of  the  nation  during  the  last  forty  years  than  Earl 
Russell.  None  of  these  notabilities  have  rendered  more  important 
services  to  their  parties,  yet  we  have  not  found  one  of  his  contem- 
poraries, and  we  have  conversed  with  many  of  them,  willing  to 
admit  that  he  is  an  eminent  statesman  and  still  less  a  great  man. 
In  reference  to  his  public  career  it  is  said  that  it  was  no  evidence 
whatever  of  his  possessing  fine  parts.  That  some  of  the  most 
momentous  events  in  English  history  occurred  under  and  were 
controlled  by  the  feeblest  and  most  insignificant  minds  known  to 
her  parliamentary  annals.  That  the  majority  of  the  cabinets  who 
directed  and  often  misdirected  Wellington  throughout  the  Penin- 
sular, he  who  won  Waterloo,  imprisoned  Napoleon,  partitioned 
Europe  and  disposed  of  the  fortunes  and  nationalities  of  millions 


44  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

of  the  human  race  all  over  the  world — the  Bexleys,  Sidmouths, 
Vansittarts,  Bathursts,  Liverpools  and  the  rest  —  wer^  miserable 
mediocrities,  execrated  for  their  mingled  feebleness  and  ferocity 
while  living,  and  despised  when  dead,  "forgotten  as  fools  or  re- 
membered as  worse,"  as  the  satirist  says  in  his  lines  on  Sheridan, 
who  was  the  victim  of  these  malignant  incompetents. 

Whatever  may  be  said  by  the  rivals  and  contemporaries  of  Earl 
Russell,  all  impartial  men  will  agree  in  the  opinion  that  his  abili- 
ties, if  not  of  the  first,  are  of  a  very  high  order,  almost  raising  their 
possessor  to  the  rank  of  genius.  One  of  his  marked  characteristics, 
said  Sir  VVm.  Hutt,  is  caution,  still  he  has  always  had  the  reputa- 
tion among  friends  and  foes  of  being  rash,  headstrong,  self  willed 
and  indifferent  to  consequences,  provided  he  can  carry,  or  thinks  he 
can  carry  his  point.  It  was  this  reputation  which  caused  the  cele- 
brated remark  of  S)dney  Smith  that  Lord  John  would  undertake 
the  command  of  the  Channel  fleet  or  the  most  difficult  operation 
in  surgery  with  equal  sangfroid,  such  was  his  self  sufficiency  and 
precipitancy.  Nothing  could  be  be  more  unjust  than  this  estimate 
of  his  character.  Though  he  has  occasionally  given  utterance 
to  indiscreet  phrases  and  indulged  in  intemperate  language, 
a  retrospect  of  his  career  will  show  that  he  has  always  been  pru- 
dent and  pains  taking.  The  best  evidence  of  this  is  the  fact  that 
at  an  early  age  he  was  put  forward  by  his  party,  the  old  Whigs  of 
the  Holland  House  School,  as  the  conductor  or  manager  of  the 
leading  questions  of  the  time.  To  discharge  the  duties  of  this 
position  required  rare  powers,  and  among  the  most  essential  of 
them  was  supposed  to  be  those  of  a  good  debater.  For  forty 
years  he  took  the  lead  and  obtained  the  ear  of  the  House  of  Com- 
mons, discharging  the  duties  of  his  responsible  position  with  suc- 
cess, though  he  has  no  pretentions  whatever  to  eloquence,  or  what 
is  called  in  America,  fine  speaking.  As  a  speaker  he  has  had  to 
contend  with  physical  difficulties  of  the  most  discouraging  descrip- 
tion -a  small,  insignificant  and  undignified  presence  ;  petite,  inex- 
pressive and  common-place  features  ;  a  harsh,  dissonant  and  mo- 
notonous voice  ;  an  embarrassed,  ungainly,  confused,  stammering, 
yet  didactic  and  somewhat  pragmatical  manner  ;  all  these  made 
up  the  aggregate  drawbacks  to  his  rhetorical  success.  Yet  he 
overcame  them  all  and  for  a  score  of  years,  led  the  House  of 
Commons,  which  is  regarded  in  England  as  the  most  fastidious 
audience  in  the  world,  but  which  in  reality  does  not  excel  in  its 
acumen  our  own  House  of  Representatives.  During  the  long 
period  since  his  first  entrance  into  public  life,  he  has  figured 
prominently  in  connection  with  every  public  measure  of  import- 
ance, has  held  together  his  party  with  match.less  skill,  always  kept 
an  eagle's  eye  on  his  opponents,  never  gave  them  an  advantage, 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  45 

was  always  on  the  lookout  for  their  weak  point,  and  rarely  missed 
an  opportunity  of  inflicting  upon  them  a  serious  political  injury. 
Such  are  the  rare  qualities  which  have  enabled  him  so  long  to 
maintain  himself  at  the  head  of  the  liberal  party.  However  his 
rivals  may  ridicule  his  shortcomings  in  comprehensive  legislation; 
however  intellectual  radicals  may  sneer  at  his  mental  and  literary 
deficiencies;  however  economists  may  object  to  his  multiplication 
of  places  for  profegcs  of  his  own  family  ;  whatever  general  excep- 
tions may  be  taken  to  him  ;  as  a  tactitian  and  party  leader  he  had 
no  rival  in  his  day;  hence  in  hours  of  disaster  the  liberals  still 
instinctively  turn  to  him.  He  never  appears  so  well  as  when  sur- 
rounded by  obstacles,  difficulties  and  impediments;  is  always 
greater  in  opposition  than  when  in  office  at  the  head  of  a  trium- 
phant party.  Notwithstanding  his  external  frigidity  and  apathetic 
hauteur,  there  is  about  him,  when  you  get  to  know  him,  and 
especially  in  his  own  home,  a  great  deal  of  geniality  and  kindness 
of  feeling.  His  adversaries  declare  that  he  is  a  politician  in  con- 
tradistinction to  a  statesman,  the  first  belonging  to  that  numerous 
class  who  are  constantly  thinking  of  what  the  country  will  do  for 
them,  while  the  latter  belong  to  that  class  of  patriots  who  are  ever 
thinking  of  what  they  can  do  for  the  country.  There  is  more 
satire  than  veracity  in  this  witticism  when  applied  to  the  Right 
Honorable  Earl.  A  close  examination  into  the  history  of  his 
public  career  has  satisfied  us  that  there  is  little  in  Earl  Russell's- 
course  to  justify  this  severe  judgment,  nor  do  we  believe  it  will  be 
that  of  a  non-partizan  and  passionless  posterity. 

At  the  early  period  of  his  life  when  he  essayed  to  attain  fame  as 
a  dramatic  writer  and  poet,  his  personal  friend,  Tom  Moore,  dedi- 
cated to  him  some  verses  in  which  the  immortal  bard  undertook 
to  persuade  his  lordship  to  leave  Parnassus  and  stick  to  Parliament; 
at  the  same  time  he  reminded  him  of  the  responsibilities  which 
attached  to  the  house  of  Russell.  It  is  not  known  whether  Moore 
was  envious  of  Lord  John's  frequent  draughts  at  the  fount  of 
poesy,  or  whether  he  really  believed  his  friend  was  never  likely 
to  become  a  favorite  with  the  muses,  and  in  kindness  to  his  liter- 
ary infirmities,  tendered  him  gende  reproofs  in  poetry,  on  which 
he  could  not  venture  in  person.  The  lines,  however,  had  the  effect 
of  chastening  down  Lord  John's  exhuberant  taste  for  metre — his 
poetic  mantle  was  soon  thrown  aside  and  exchanged  for  the  digni- 
fied robe  of  the  legislator. 

Earl  Russell  was  born  in  1792  and  entered  Parliament  as  a  mem- 
ber for  the  "rotten  borough"  of  Tavistock  in  1814  ;  in  1820  he  was 
member  for  the  Huntingdonshire  ;  for  the  town  of  Bandon  in  Ire- 
land in  1830,  and  for  Devonshire  in  1831,  which  seat  he  vacated 
in  1834,  on  his  appointment  to  the  office  of  Secretary  for  the  Home 


46  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

Department,  and  was  the  guiding  spirit  of  Lord  Melbourne's  ad- 
ministration. From  1 84 1  to  1846,  whilst  Sir  Robert  Peel  was  in 
power,  Lord  John  Russell  led  the  opposition,  and  on  the  defeat  of 
Peel  this  year  succeeded  to  the  Premiership,  which  he  held  until 
1852.  In  office,  he  showed  an  indisposition  to  take  the  initiative 
in  any  marked  mejasure  of  progress  and  advancement.  As  a 
consequence,  he  could  only  depend  on  a  small  and  uncertain  ma- 
jority m  Parliament ;  and  the  inefficiency  of  his  ecclesiastical  titles 
bill,  accompanied,  nearly  at  the  same  time,  by  the  secession  of  his 
colleague,  Lord  Palmerston,  forced  him  into  retirement.  Under 
the  administration  of  Lord  Aberdeen,  he  was  Foreign  Secretary 
for  a  s^on  time  and  then  Lord  President  of  the  Council.  Lord 
Palmerston  now  became  Premier,  and  in  1855  appointed  Lord  John 
Colonial  Secretary,  and  he  represented  England  at  the  Vienna 
Conferences,  and  in  consequence  of  the  dissatisfaction  caused  by 
his  diplomatic  course,  again  resigned.  In  1859  he  resumed  office 
under  Palmerston  as  Minister  for  Foreign  affairs,  and  bore  a  con- 
spicuous part  in  the  solution  of  the  important  questions  which  oc- 
curred in  political  affairs  in  different  parts  of  the  world.  Amongst 
these  may  be  mentioned  the  protests  made  by  the  British  govern- 
ment to  that  of  Russia  against  the  oppressions  practiced  on  the 
Poles;  its  endeavors  to  deter  the  great  German  powers  from  pur- 
suing an  aggressive  policy  towards  Denmark,  and  the  disputes 
which  arose  between  England  and  the  United  States  during  the 
civil  war.  It  must  be  admitted,  with  reference  to  some  of  these 
vexed  questions,  that  however  unsuccessful  the  efforts  of  England 
may  have  been,  through  the  backwardness  of  allies,  in  averting  the 
evils  it  sought  to  counteract,  the  sincerity  of  its  intentions,  as  evin- 
ced in  its  diplomatic  action  under  the  auspices  of  Earl  Russell, 
has  been  clearly  manifest.  We,  therefore,  who  felt  at  the  time,  or 
now  feel,  any  bitterness  towards  the  mother  country  for  her  course 
towards  the  South  during  the  civil  war  —  her  apparent  want  of 
sympathy—  should  now,  that  the  hour  of  passion  has  passed,  be 
ready  to  unite  in  according  to  her  the  meed  of  praise  for  having 
been  wiser  in  that  great  crisis  than  we  ourselves  were 

During  his  active  political  life,  such  was  his  patient,  persevering 
industry,  that  he  contributed  largely  to  the  literature  of  the  day. 
Among  his  best  known  works  are  his  Life  of  Lord  William  Rus- 
sell, his  Miscellaneous  Essays  and  "Memories  of  the  Affairs  of 
Europe,"  "A  Concise  History  of  the  British  Constitution."  "The 
Nun  of  Arvouca,  a  tale,"  and  a  tragic  drama  styled  "Don  Carlos." 
Has  most  recent  work  composed  during  his  retirement,  is  entitled 
The  Rise  and  Progress  of  the  Christian  Religion  in  the  West  of 
Europe,  from  the  reign  of  Tiberius  to  the  end  of  the  Council  of 
Trent,     This  work  illustrates  how  happily  and  usefully  the  even- 


RAMBLING    REMINIS«aW£St  47 

ing  of  his  days  was  passed,  how  far  he^ag|>rpmoved  from  those 
discontented,  querulous,  ill-conditioned,  g'oufy  old  men,  who  ludi- 
crously contend  against  the  grave — a  burden  to  themselves  and  a 
nuisance  to  all  around.  He  did  not  indulge  in*the  vain  regrets  of 
those  who  regard  death  as  the  "evil  day."  Death,  he  knew,  could 
not  be  staved  off,  however  our  energies  may  be  economized,  that 
in  the  end  we  are  all  brought  to  bay  ;  there  is  no  more  thread  on 
the  reel ;  for  the  fates  together  have  spun  the  whole  web  of  our 
existence  and  there  is  an  end.  The  ancients  lamented  old  age 
and  the  grave,  because  not  believing  in  the  immortality  of  the  soul, 
there  was  no  hope  beyond  it  —  nothing  but  everlasting  night. 
When  the  flower  of  youth  is  passed,  says  one  of  the  pagans,  it  is 
better  to  die  at  once,  and  he  prayed  that  he  might  be  struck  dead 
at  sixty.  These  unnatural  pagan  sentiments  exaggerate  the  value 
of  bodily  strength  and  animal  spirits,  the  joy  of  the  wine  cup  and 
the  delights  of  love.  They  evince  an  imperfect  idea  of  the  pleas- 
ures of  matured  intellect,  of  calm  sagacity  and  of  that  tranquil 
wisdom  which  looks  before  and  after  without  terror  and  without 
excessive  regrets.  Christianity  corrects  by  its  sublime  teachings 
alike  the  pagan's  morbid  love  of  youth  and  his  dread  of  old  age. 
And  Earl  Russell  lived  and  died  an  humble,  sincere  and  pious 
Christian. 

Before  leaving  Richmond,  where  we  had  passed  so  many  happy 
hours,  and  which  we  have  since  revisited  many  a  time,  with  the 
old  pleasure,  a  word  more  must  be  ventured  as  to  its  past. 

In  the  early  part  of  the  last  century  it  was  much  frequented  as 
a  watering  place.  A  mineral  spring  in  the  park  was  supposed  to 
possess  valuable  curative  elements.  Both  pleasure  seekers  and 
invalids  were  attracted  to  its  gay  halls  and  life  giving  streams. 
Grand  hotels,  pump  rooms,  baths,  squares,  terraces  and  crescents 
were  erected  or  laid  out  in  eligible  and  commanding  situations. 
The  son  of  a  dead  baron,  or  some  such  sprig  of  nobility,  was  al- 
ways installed  as  master  of  ceremonies,  and  an  eminent  rural  M. 
D.,  the  cousin  of  a  living  Viscount,  if  such  could  be  had,  as  well 
doctor  as  an  analytic  chemist,  was  sure  to  receive  from  the  man- 
aging committee  the  appointment  of  resident  physician.  Dowa- 
ger whist  players,  half  pay  officers,  old  maids,  fortune  hunters, 
widows  without  fortunes,  but  ready  for  the  matrimonial  game, 
people  of  good  family  and  questionable  morals  flocked  to  Rich- 
mond Spa. 

This  is  now  all  changed.  The  spring  still  flows,  but  seems  to 
have  lost  its  virtues  ;  and  in  Richmond's  palmy  days  was  proba- 
bly more  "doctored"  with  tinctures  of  iron  and  sulphur  than  were 
the  shaky  valetudinarians  who  here  resorted  for  the  tonic  or  aper- 
ient waters. 


4®  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

The  grand  houses  oi  the  past  are  now  business  places,  and  steady- 
going  people  replace  thejackanaps  and  Jack-a-dandies,  simper- 
ing maids  and  old  blades  of  1750. 

No  intelligent  foreigner  in  London  fails  to  visit  Richmond, 
either  to  enjoy  the  scenic  beauties  of  the  park  or  dissipate  the 
spleen  by  its  water,  which,  if  without  mineral  ingredients,  are 
much  purer  than  those  of  the  Metropolis;  or  to  enliven  the  im- 
agination and  improve  the  understanding  by  learning  the  associa- 
tions of  the  place  and  reviving  the  instructive  history  of  the  past. 


CHAPTER  V. 


WINDSOR  CASTLE,  PAST  AND  PRESENT — GEORGE  IV — THE  LAWLESS 

LORDS  OF  OTHER  DAYS — THE  ROYAL  STABLES — 

THE   PARKS,    ETC. 


A  friend,  who  is  ever  ready  to  impart  information  in  an  agree- 
able way,  has  recently  expressed  the  opinion,  in  our  hearing,  that 
we  love  pleasure.  The  innocent  lamb  may  prefer  work,  but  not 
the  straying  sheep.  A  man  of  nice  perceptions,  our  Jidus  Achates, 
rarely  fails  in  a  diagnosis.  We  do  not  consider  it  worth  while, 
therefore,  to  deny  the  "soft  impeachment."  Yet  we  would  not 
have  our  reader  imagine  that  we  love  nothing  but  pleasure  be- 
cause, instead  of  returning  to  the  dingy  atmosphere  of  London, 
we  shall  penetrate  forthwith  deeper  into  the  country,  and  possibly 
to  the  heart  of  the  Royal  county  of  Berks. 

During  the  annual  absences  of  the  Queen,  the  State  apartments 
in  Windsor  Castle  are  thrown  open  to  the  public,  and  joining  the 
"madding  crowd"  of  sight  seers,  we  bade  adieu  to  Richmond,  and 
made  the  best  of  our  way  to  this  ancient  seat  of  British  Royalty. 
No  season  could  have  been  more   favorable   for  our    excursion. 


RAMBLING    REMINISCENSES.  49 

The  trees  were  in  leaf  and  the  country  clothed  in  verdure.  Pleas- 
ant parks,  well  cultivated  fields,  quiet  homesteads  and  patches  of 
common  and  garden  enlivened  and  beautified  the  landscapes  on 
the  entire  route.  The  sky  was  of  a  sweet  opaline  blue— some- 
thing^ one  does  not  see  every  day  in  England.  Looking  out  upon 
the  Heavens  and  the  earth,  we  came  near  starding  our  neighbors 
in  the  railway  carriage,  by  exclaiming,  how  pleasant  to  live  some- 
times ! 

But  the  train  stops.  Our  dream  is  fulfilled  ;  there  stands  the 
Round  Tower ;  in  a  moment  we  are  hastening  to  the  Palace  gates. 
We  stop  to  scan  the  exterior  of  the  building,  we  run  through  it, 
we  return  and  linger  to  study  it,  and  feel  when  it  is  over  a  certain 
sense   of  disappointment. 

The  casde  is  an  old  stone  edifice,  with  turrets  and  batdements 
more  like  an  antique  fortress  in  exterior  appearance  than  a  do- 
mestic habitation.  Has  somewhat  the  cold  and  sombre  aspect  of 
a  prison,  and  its  gaunt  buttresses  and  dim  archways,  and  high  and 
broad  ramparts  plainly  tell  the  history  of  its  feudal  origin.  The 
narrow,  meanly  built  streets  of  the  town  of  Windsor  extend  on  one 
side  to  the  very  gates,  and  the' visitor  emerges  from  them  to  pass 
immediately  into  the  palace  court.  But  for  its  situation  on  a 
lofty  hill  and  the  surrounding  park  and  forest,  with  its  wild  and 
picturesque  scenery,  Windsor  Casde  would  be  the  most  cheerless 
and  unattractive  of  homes,  though  it  has  been  much  modernized 
and  has  so  many  of  the  adjuncts  of  domestic  life,  that  its  appear- 
ance has  ceased  to  create  the  idea  of  one  of  those  rugged  fort- 
resses destined  solely  for  war,  whose  gloomy  towers  suggest  to 
the  imagination  only  dungeons,  chains  and  executions.  Neverthe- 
less, it  carries  us  back  to  the  time  when  anarchy  and  violence 
glowered  over  England  ,  to  the  age  of  the  Norman  and  of  feudal- 
ism, when  there  was  no  distinction  but  that  of  soldier  and  serf. 
To  the  time  when  the  fair-haired  and  blue-eyed  Saxon  was- 
crushed  by  his  haughty  Norman  conqueror,  and  who,  while  bi- 
ding his  time,  breathed  against  his  oppressor  curses  not  loud  but 
deep.  Windsor,  as  it  now  stands,  and  regarded  as  a  simple  spec- 
imen of  its  particular  style  of  architecture,  is  unequalled  in  Eng- 
land for  grandeur  and  magnificence. 

This  spot,  we  are  told,  was  selected  as  a  residence  by  William 
the  Conqueror,  who  was  drawn  to  the  neighboring  forest  by  his 
fondness  for  the  chase.  The  country  now  embraced  in  the  Royal 
county,  was  then  as  famous  for  wild  boars,  as  it  now  is  for  Berk- 
shire pigs.  William  I.,  built,  according  to  tradition,  a  rude  fort- 
ress on  the  spot  occupied  by  the  present  edifice,  and  that  or  some 
other  Royal  building  occupied  the  ground  till  the  14th  century 
when  the  existing  casUe  was  erected.     The  old  building  had  gone 


50  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

much  to  decay  when  Georg^e  IV.  awoke  to  the  fact  that  it  was  the 
only  specimen  of  a  Royal  Palace  of  any  antiquity  or  pretentions 
in  Eno^land,  and  determined  to  preserve  it,  if  for  no  other  reason 
than  as  a  memorial  of  the  past.  Accordingly  the  government  in 
1824  undertook  its  restoration  and  spent  on  the  work — so  says  the 
guide  book — ;^90o,ooo.  An  idea  may  be  formed  of  its  extent 
from  this  fact.  From  that  time  it  has  been  the  country  residence 
of  the  Royal  family  (it  causes  Berkshire  to  be  styled  the  Royal 
county  ;)  though  the  Queen  has  from  her  enormous  wealth — she 
is  said  to  be  the  richest  woman  in  Europe — secured  several  more 
congenial  country  seats,  one,  Osborne,  in  the  Isle  of  Wight  and 
the  other  Balmoral,  in  the  Highlands  of  Scotland.  The  latter  was 
built  at  the  request,  so  it  is  said,  of  Prince  Albert,  a  man  of  good 
sense  and  much  taste,  not  like  a  castle,  but  after  the  modern  style 
of  a  gentleman's  residence. 

On  the  north  side  of  Windsor  Castle  the  State  apartments  are 
situated  and  consist  of  nine  large  rooms  in  a  suite,  the  first  be- 
ing the  Queen's  grand  audience  and  the  last,  Her  Majesty's  grand 
presence  chamber.  We  could  see  no  particular  reason  why  they 
should  be  so  styled,  though  like  the  rooms  of  all  palaces  they  are 
capacious  and  abound  in  gilt.  They  are  approached  by  a  wide 
stone  stair  case,  the  ^raW  stair-way  of  course,  which  is  gaudily 
painted  with  fabulous  stories  from  Ovid's  Metamorphasis,  and  at 
the  head  of  which  stands  a  stature  of  George  IV.  whose  great  am- 
bition was  to  be  styled,  as  he  was  on  the  slenderest  possible 
grounds,  "the  first  gentleman  in  Europe  " 

George  IV.  was  one  of  the  most  wretched  specimens  of  a  man 
who  ever  existed  on  or  off  a  throne,  uniting  in  himself  the  sot, 
dissembler  and  roue.  The  late  Sir  George  Jackson,  in  his  re- 
cently published  volumes,  photographs  the  life  of  the  early  part  of 
the  present  century.  He  speaks  of  the  Prince  of  Wales  in  1804 
(afterwards  George  IV.)  and  of  an  illness  which  arose  from  the 
fact  that  the  Prince  and  the  Duke  of  Norfolk  had  been  so  drunk 
for  three  whole  days,  that  the  former  at  last  fell  like  a  pig,  and 
would  have  died  like  one,  but  for  prompt  and  copious  bleeding,. 
How  rude  the  "first  gentleman"  could  be  when  he  chose,  even  to 
his  wife,  is  well  known.  At  a  drawing  room,  held  by  Queen  Char- 
lotte in  June,  1807,  when  the  Prince  and  Princess  of  Wales  were 
present,  he  took  no  notice  of  the  Princess.  Turning  his  back 
upon  her,  he  stood  between  her  and  the  Queen,  and  as  loni; 
as  the  Princess  remained  he  kept  up  a  conversation  with  his  sis- 
ters, thereby  preventing  them  from  addressing  a  word  to  his  wife. 
This  feeling  against  his  wife  he  paraded  everywhere.  He  was  jeal- 
ous of  her  popularity — quite  unnecessarily,  for  she  made  herselt 
ridiculous,  and  the  subject  of  scornful  criticism,  by  her  lavish  dis- 


RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES.  5I 

play  at  evening  parties  of  her  protuberant  beauties.  At  these  par- 
ties the  Prince  would  stare  at  ladies  whom  he  knew,  without  speak- 
ing to  them.  His  condescendmg  speech  was  addressed  only  to 
his  first  wife,  Mrs.  Fitzherbert  and  her  sister,  Lady  Hagerstone. 
The  first  of  these  ladies  lived  at  Brighton  with  the  state  of  a  Queen 
and  the  spirit  of  a  goddess  of  mirth.  Meanwhile,  his  Royal  High- 
ness flirted  with  "his  future  Duchess,"  the  Marchioness  of  Hert- 
ford. He  knew  how  to  play  a  good  part  at  times.  In  1811  he 
gave  a' grand  fete  at  Carlton  House  at  which  Louis  XVHI  and  the 
sad  looking  Duchess  of  Angouleme  appeared.  The  Prince  re- 
ceived Louis  as  a  Sovereign  de facto.  'T  am  only  a  Count  of 
Lille,"  said  Louis  modestly.  "Sir,"  said  the  Prince,  "you  are  the 
King  of  France  and  Navarre,"  and  he  treated  his  guest  according- 
ly. Both  the  Prince's  wives,  Mrs.  Fitzherbert  and  the  Princess  of 
Wales  were  at  home  by  themselves,  but  the  favorite  of  the  hour 
was  commanded  to  atttmd.  It  cannot  be  denied  that  English  so- 
ciety needed  refinement  in  the  first  decade  of  the  present  century. 
And  I  may  add,  some  of  the  foreign  society  was  quite  as  free  and 
easy. 

We  never  think  of  George  IV  without  the  caustic  lines  of 
Thackeray  recurring  to  memory.  "I  try  to  take  him  to  pieces  and 
find  silk  stockings,  paddings,  stays,  a  coat  with  frogs  and  a  fur  col- 
lar, a  star  and  blue  ribbon,  a  pocket  handkerchief  prodigiously 
scented,  one  of  Truefitts  best  nutty  brown  wigs  reeking  with  oil,  a 
set  of  teeth  and  a  huge  black  stock,  underwaistcoats,  more  under- 
waistcoats  and  then  nothing.  There  was  nothing  of  him  but  a 
grin  and  a  bow." 

But  we  will  never  get  through  Windsor  if  we  linger  after  this 
fashion  before  a  statue,  even  though  it  be  that  of  a  Monarch.  The 
ceilings  of  all  the  suite,  constituting  the  State  apartments,  are  paint- 
ed in  imitation  of  fresco  by  Antonio  Verrio,  an  Itallian  artist  in- 
vited to  England  by  Charles  II.  He  is  little  known  to  fame  but 
made  a  fortune  decorating  Palace  walls.  His  forte  consisted  in 
painting  gods,  goddesses,  nymphs,  naiades  and  the  whole  host  of 
heathen  mythology,  in  the  brightest  colors  and  the  most  extraor- 
dinary attitudes.  Instead  of  giving  this  fabulous  host  the  graceful 
attitudes  of  divinities,  they  are  oftener  represented  as  semi- 
nude  and  sprawling  in  all  sorts  of  grotesque  contortions.  '  The 
general  effort  of  Verrio's  pencil,  however,  is  decidedly  ornament- 
al. These  rooms  are  furnished  obviously  at  great  cost,  and  are 
elaborately  decorated  with  paintings,  many  of  which  have  faded, 
with  gobelin  tapestry,  wearing  the  appearance  of  having  been  nioth 
eaten,  and  with  much  statuary  etc.  They  look,  on  the  whole, 
more  like  public  galleries  than  as  if  they  had  ever  been  the  scenes 
of  private   life  and  domestic  comfort.     There   could   be    nothing 


$2  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

really  comfortable  in  them.  No  fire,  however  large,  could  heat 
them,  and  as  for  preventing  draughts,  it  would  be  impossible  with- 
out sealing  them  up.  It  is  not  surprising  then  that  the  Queen  has 
provided  herself  with  modern  mansions. 

In  one  of  the  apartments  our  eyes  were  attracted  by  a  portrait, 
taken  from  life,  of  Mary  Queen  of  Scots.  Mary  was  a  lovely 
woman,  with  an  expression  of  great  sweetness  and  sincerity  of 
character  She  is  represented  as  holding  a  crucifix  in  her  right 
hand  and  in  her  left  a  breviary.  The  painting  bears  a  lengthy  and 
high  -flown  Latin  inscription  which  in  substance  represents  her  to 
have  been  by  right  Princess  and  legitimate  heiress  of  England  and 
Ireland,  as  tormented  by  the  heresies  of  her  people,  overcome  by 
rebellions,  and  deceived  by  her  relation,  Queen  Elizabeth,  perfid- 
iously detained  a  prisoner  for  nineteen  years,  until  the  English 
Parliament,  stimulated  by  religious  animosities,  by  an  inhuman 
sentence  condemned  her  to  death,  when  on  the  i8th  of  February, 
1587,  she  was  beheaded  by  the  common  executioner  in  the  45th 
year  of  her  age  and  of  her  reign. 

The  next  room,  of  elegant  dimensions,  is  the  dining  room,  or  Wa- 
terloo chamber,as  it  is  called,  from  the  fact  that  William  IV gave  din- 
ners in  it  in  commemoration  of  the  victory  of  the  18th  ofJune,i8r5, 
surrounded  by  all  the  surviving  commanders  who  took  part  in  that 
famous  battle  It  is  the  repository,  too,  for  the  portraits  of  all 
those  connected  with  the  memorable  field.  Among  these  portraits 
is  one  of  Oeorge  IV,  who  is  said  to  have — under  a  hallucination 
of  mind— affirmed  that  he  was  present  at  the  battle,  and  to  have 
repeated  the  tale  so  frequently  that  he  finally  came  to  believe  it 
himself  On  one  occasion,  having  appealed  to  the  Duke  of  Wel- 
lington, His  Grace,  with  infinite  presence  of  mind  replied,  "Sire,  I 
have  often  enjoyed  the  honor  of  hearing  your  majesty  relate  the 
anecdote."  The  banqueting  hall  or  State  dining  room  is,  says  the 
Hand  Book,  "two  hundred  and  thirty-four  feet  long,  thirty-four 
feet  broad  and  thirty- two  feet  high."  which  we  are  prepared  to 
believe  and  accordingly  take  on  credit.  The  ceiling  is  emblazoned 
with  the  armorial  bearings  of  all  the  Knights  of  the  Garter,  from 
the  institution  of  the  order  down  to  the  present  time,  all  dead,  all 
buried,  all  forgotten.  How  can  one  look  upon  these  records  with- 
out a*  cloud  of  melancholy  stealing  over  the  heart. 

At  the  eastern  end  of  the  gallery  stands  the  throne.  The  guard 
room  is  full  of  ancient  relics  in  the  way  of  old  armor  hanging  from 
the  walls,  warlike  and  sporting  implements  of  different  ages  and 
countries,  the  whole  furnishing  food  for  curious  and  amusing  spec- 
ulation The  last  of  the  rooms  exhibited  is  the  Queen's  presence 
chamber,  a  capacious  apartment  much  like  the  others. 

Of  course  nothing  like  a  description    can    be   attempted   of  the 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  53 

decorations  and  furniture,  articles  of  virtu,  etc.,  in  or  about  the 
castle,  nor  would  such  a  catalogue  interest  any  but  a  guide  book 
compiler,  or  a  cockney  reporter  of  the  Jenkins  type. 

Passing  into  the  court  yard  on  the  way  to  the  chapel  and  look- 
ing upon  the  old  castle,  around  which  the  ivy  twined  its  solemn 
arms,  we  could  but  reflect  upon  how  many  a  venerable  pile  time 
has  moulded  into  beauty,  which  in  the  day  of  its  power  was  only 
terrible!  The  age  of  chivalry  seemed  to  pass  before  us,  the  turf  to 
heave  beneath  our  feet,  strange  vibrations  seem  to  run  along  the 
dead  that  slumber  there,  and  forth  they  come  again,  with  their 
stern,  earnest  faces  ;  the  mailed  warrior,  the  representative  of  an  age 
long  passed  away — the  white  stoled  priest,  the  minister  of  the  old 
faith  ;  the  serf  with  the  wassail  bowl, and  the  most  strange  and  eccen- 
tric of  all,  the  rude  jester  of  the  old  baronial  hall.  For  a  moment  they 
all  live  again,  while  we  catch  once  more  rude  snatches  of  their  mirth 
and  music,  revelry  and  song.  Such  is  the  poetry  of  an  old  castle,  of 
an  old  baronial  ruin  !  In  the  days  of  the  castle  and  baron,  however, 
they  were  terrible  things.  In  the  age  of  King  Stephen,  A.  D.,  1134- 
II 58,  when  the  Barons  exerted  their  greatest  power  and  indulged 
in  unlimited  feudal  insolence  and  feudal  tyranny — an  age  of  castles 
— when  1,500  were  built  and  garrisoned,  all  the  laws  of  God  and 
man  were  trampled  under  foot,  and  the  castle  was  little  else  than 
the  stronghold  of  robbers  and  highwaymen.  "Every  rich  man 
made  his  casdes"  (says  that  old  chronicler,  John  of  Salisbury ,)"and 
held  them  against  the  King,  and  the  land  was  filled  with  castles. 
Grievously  they  oppressed  the  people  with  their  castle  works. — 
When  the  castles  were  made,  they  filled  them  with  devils  and  evil 
men  and  then  they  seized  every  one  who  was  supposed  to  have 
any  property — man  and  woman,  both  by  day  and  night,  and  put 
them  in  prison  for  their  gold  and  silver,  and  punished  them  with 
such  inexpressible  torments  as  none  of  the  martyrs  ever  suffered. 
They  hung  them  by  the  feet  and  smoked  them  with  foul  smoke; 
and  they  hung  them  by  the  thumbs  or  by  the  head  and  hung  fire 
to  their  feet ;  they  put  knotted  cords  about  their  heads  and  twist- 
ed them  till  they  pierced  their  brains.  They  put  some  in  dungeons 
where  were  adders,  and  snakes,  and  toads,  and  so  tormented  them. 
Others  they  placed  in  a  Crucet  House,  that  is  a  chest  which  was 
short,  and  narrow  and  shallow,  and  they  put  in  sharp  stones,  and 
pressed  people  in  them  till  all  their  limbs  were  broken.  In  many 
of  the  castles  were  things  very  horrible  and  hateful — these  were 
"Lachantages,"  that  were  as  much  as  two  or  three  men  could  lift, 
and  they  were  so  contrived  that  the  man  was  fastened  to  a  beam 
with  sharp  iron  about  his  throat  or  neck,  that  he  could  neither  sit 
nor  lie  down,  nor  sleep,  but  was  always  compelled  to  support  that 
weight.     Many  they  tormented  with  hunger.     I  cannot  tell  all  the 


54  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

sufferings  and  all  the  torments  which  the  wretched  people  bore  du- 
ring the  nineteen  years  of  Stephen's  reign.  They  laid  tributes 
upon  towns,  and  when  the  wretched  people  had  no  more  to  give, 
they  ravaged  and  burnt  all  the  towns,  so  that  you  might  go  a  long 
day's  journey  and  not  find  a  man  dwelling  in  the  town,  or  the  land 
tilled.     Then  was  corn,  and  flesh,  and  cheese,  and  butter  dear." 

Some  may  be  inclined  to  regard  this  as  an  exaggerated  account. 
Far  from  it.  It  is  matter  of  history,  that  during  the  reign  of 
Stephe^,  England  presented  one  continued  scene  of  confusion  and 
bloodshed.  David,  King  of  Scotland,  espoused  the  cause  of  his 
niece,  Matilda,  daughter  of  Henry  I,  youngest  son  of  the  conquer- 
or; by  his  wife  Matilda,  daughter  of  Malcolm  III,  of  Scotland, 
and  niece  of  Edgar  Atheling.  This  marriage  united  the  Saxon 
and  Norman  lines.  Henry  I  usurped  the  dukedom  of  Norman- 
dy, and  by  this  act,  brought  England  into  collision  with  France 
and  laid  the  foundation  of  the  wars  which  ensued.  Matilda,  niece 
of  David,  was  the  widow  of  Henry  V,  Emperor  of  Germany,  and 
David  invaded  England  to  maintain  her  right ;  he  was  defeated  at 
the  batde  of  the  Standard,  but  Matilda,  who  soon  landed  in  Eng- 
land, was  acknowledged  by  the  clergy,  but  during  the  civil  wars 
was  expelled.  It  was  during  these  times  of  civil  commotion  and 
wars  for  the  succession  that  castles  multiplied  in  England  and  the 
land  was  desolated  by  the  rival  barons  and  their  retainers. 

Such  having  been  the  condition  of  affairs  during  the  reign  of 
Stephen,  we  are  not  surprised  when  our  chronicler  adds  "many 
abandoned  their  country,  others  forsaking  their  houses,  built 
wretched  huts  in  the  churchyards,  hoping  for  protection  from  the 
sacred  character  of  the  place.  Whole  families,  after  sustaining 
life  as  long  as  they  could  by  eating  roots,  herbs,  dogs,  and  horses, 
perished  at  last  with  hunger,  and  you  might  see  many  pleasant 
villages  without  one  inhabitant  of  either  sex.  In  this  King's  time 
all  was  dissension  and  evil,  and  rapine.  The  great  men  roseagamst 
him  they  had  sworn  to  support,  but  with  whom  they  maintained 
no  truth.     They  built  castles  which  they  held  out  against  him." 

This  is  the  poetry  of  old  castles  to  which  we  flock  in  the  pres- 
ent day  with  such  eager  curiosity,  over  which  we  indulge  in  so 
much  sentiment. 

From  the  State  departments  we  proceeded  to  St.  George's  Chapel, 
which  stands  on  the  spot  of  the  ancient  edifice,  built  by  Edward 
III  in  honor  of  St.  George  of  Cappadocia,  Primate  of  Egypt  in 
the  fourth  century,  and  Patron  saint  of  England.  St.  George  was 
put  to  death  by  the  Pagans  of  Alexandria.  Though  he  gave  them 
ample  provocation  still  having  been  slain  by  detested  Pagans,  it 
was  enough,  with  a  little  legendary  coloring,  to  make  him  a  mar- 
tyr.    The  crusaders  read  of  him  in  their  calendars  and  martyrolo- 


RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES.  ,  55 

gies,  and  under  the  winning  appellation  of  St.  George  the  Victori- 
ous, he  was  installed  among  the  Christians  of  the  East.  These 
circumstances  and  the  assistance  which  they  imagined  they  had 
received  from  the  beatified  St,  George,  at  the  siege  of  Antioch,led 
them  to  adopt  him  as  the  patron  of  soldiers  and  tutelar  saint  of 
England.  He  was,  as  one  tradition  avers,  in  reality  a  Cappado- 
cian  tanner,  but  be  this  as  it  may,  he  has  been  for  many  a  century 
a  favorite  with  all  sorts  and  conditions  of  Englishmen,  thus — 

*'Our  ancient  word  of  courage,  fair  St.  George  !" 

was  the  invocation  of  the  fierce  Crook-Back  upon  his  last  battle 
field  of  Bosworth,  and  Shakespeare,  with  strong,  double-edged 
wit,  makes  the  bold  bastard  Falconbridge  refer  to  him,  as 

"St.  George  who  swinged  the  dragon,  and  e'er  since 

Sits  upon  horseback  at  mine  hostess  door." 

On  entering  the  chapel,  our  admiration  was  excited  by  the 
beauty  of  the  architecture,  which  is  elaborately  ornate.  In  one  of 
the  chapels  is  the  beautiful  cenotaph  of  the  Princess  Charlotte,  the 
unhappy  daughter  of  George  IV.  Here  are  buried  a  long  line  of 
Royal  personages  and  illustrious  heroes  "by  all  their  country's 
wishes  blessed."  While  lingering  among  the  tombs,  Addison's 
beautiful  lines  recurred  to  memory:  "When  I  see  Kings  lying  by 
those  Vv'ho  deposed  them  ;  when  I  consider  rival  wits  placed  side 
by  side  ;  or  the  holy  that  divide  the  world  with  their  contests  and 
disputes,  I  reflect  with  sorrow  and  astonishment  on  the  litde 
competitions  and  debates  of  mankind  ;  when  I  read  the  several 
dates  of  the  tombs,  of  some  that  died  yesterday,  and  some  six 
hundred  years  ago,  I  consider  that  great  day  when  we  shall  all  of 
us  be  cotemporaries  and  make  our  appearance  together." 

In  allusion  to  the  fact  that  the  rival  Kings  of  York  and  Lan- 
caster sleep  here,  side  by  side.  Pope  wrote  : 

"Let  softest  strains  ill-fated  Henry  mourn, 
And  palms  eternal  flourish  round  his  urn  ; 
Here  o'er  the  martyr  King  the  marble  weeps, 
And,  fast  beside  him.  once  fear'd  Edward  sleeps, 
Whom  not  the  extended  Albion  could  contain, 
From  old  Bolerium  to  the  German  main. 
The  grave  unites,  where  e'en  the  great  find  rest, 
And  blended  lie  the  oppressor  and  the  oppress'd." 

The  choir  portion  of  the  chapel  is  appropriated  to  the  perform- 
ance of  divine  service  and  the  ceremony  of  installing  the  Knights 
of  the  Garter.  The  stalls  of  the  Knights  are  arranged  on  either 
side  of  the  choir — over  each  stall  are  mantle,  sword,  helmet  and 


56  ,          RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

crest  of  the  Knight  by  whom  it  is  occupied.  Above  these  is  the 
banner  on  which  are  his  armorial  bearings  and  at  the  back  of  the 
seal,  on  engraved  brass  plates,  are  recorded  his  name,  style  and 
titles.  The  brass  plates  of  former  occupants  for  centuries  are  pre- 
served as  a  perpetual  record  of  the  distinguished  honor  each  has 
in  his  lifetime  borne  ;  amongst  them  is  that  of  Sigismund,  Emperor 
of  Germany  in  141 8,  Casimer  IV,  King  of  Poland,  in  145 1,  and 
Robert  Peyton,  who  assumed  the  surname  of  Ufford  and  was  Earl  of 
Suffolk  in  1349,  who  was  one  of  the  founders  of  the  Order. 

George  III  and  IV  and  William  IV  all  died  at  Windsor  and  lie 
in  the  Royal  Dormitory,  to  the  east  of  St.  George's  Chapel,  where 
all  the  members  of  the  Royal  family  who  have  died  in  England 
have  been  placed  since  its  application  to  the  purposes  of  a  mauso- 
leum, with  the  exception  of  the  Duke  of  Sussex,  who,  at  his  own 
request,  was  buried  in  Kensal  Green  Cemetery,  and  the  unhappy 
queen,  wife  of  George  IV,  who  was  removed  to  Brunswick.  One 
cannot  visit  such  a  spot,  rife  with  royalty  in  its  ruins,  without  its 
suggesting  the  moral  of  the  poet:  "The  glories  of  our  blood  are 
shadows,  not  substantial  things."  Itsinke  deep  into  our  souls  that 
God  is  ''no  respecter  of  persons,"  and  there  is  "no  king  saved  by 
the  multitude  of  an  host."  Such  visits  seem  to  urge  the  admoni- 
tion upon  the  mighty  and  the  lowly,  "Be  wise  now.  O  ye  kings  ; 
be  instructed,  ye  judges  of  the  earth.  Serve  the  Lord  with  fear 
and  rejoice  with  trembling."  It  is  ''appointed  unto  all  men  once 
to  die :"  but  after  death  the  judgment !  The  mind  is  startled 
from  the  engrossing  pursuits,  the  cares  and  anxieties  of  this  world, 
and  we  apply  these  texts  in  all  their  force.  How  impressively  do 
they  counsel  the  wisdom  of  seeking  pardon  and  peace  from  that 
Saviour  by  whom  alone  we  are  saved. 

On  the  next  morning  we  attended  service  at  St.  George's 
Chapel  and  saw  a  number  of  the  gallant  veterans  called  the  "Mili- 
tary Knights  of  Windsor,"  who  have  residences  in  the  immediate 
vicinity  of  the  castle  and  small  annual  pensions.  The  only  duty 
imposed  upon  them  being  a  regular  attendance  at  church  and  con- 
stant prayer  for  the  prosperity  of  the  sovereign. 

There  are  two  parks  at  Windsor.  The  little  park  nearest  the 
castle,  contains  500  acres,  which  is  enclosed  by  a  brick  wall.  It 
is  studded  with  clumps  of  trees  and  abounds  in  promenades,  the 
finest  being  the  "long  walk,"  which  is  lined  with  elms.  Here  are 
the  Queen's  stables,  wherein,  like  those  of  Branksome  Castle,  "a 
hundred  steeds  feed  free  in  stall."  These  stables,  plain  and  sub- 
stantial, are  built  on  the  most  approved  plan  for  securing  fresh  air, 
light  and  uniform  temperature,  for  the  comfort  of  the  animals. 
The  heat  is  regulated  by  a  thermometer  and  is  not  allowed  to 
rise  above  65°  Far.,  or  to  sink  below  50.     The  system  of  ventila- 


RAMBLING    REMINISCENSES.  57 

tion  is  by  openings  near  the  ceilings,  constructed  so  as  to  prevent 
a  current  of  air  from  passing  over  the  animals.  The  light  is  uni- 
form and  without  any  glare,  and  the  rooms  are  ceiled  so  as  to 
prevent  dust  from  the  lofts  getting  into  the  eyes  of  the  horses  and 
the  ascending  gasses  from  lodging  in  the  hay.  The  stalls  are 
level  and  have  clay  floors — inclined  stalls  and  plank  floors  have 
been  universally  abandoned  in  England,  as  they  fatigue  and  injure 
the  horses.  The  stalls  are  roomy  so  as  to  encourage  the  aniinals 
to  lie  down,  and  no  straw  is  ever  put  in  them  for  bedding. 

The  Oueen  keeps  the  full  complement  of  forty  carriages  in  dif- 
ferent styles  and  one  hundred  blooded  horses  for  use  while  at 
Windsor.  The  kennels  are  near  the  stables,  where  Her  Majesty's 
fancy  dogs  are  kept,  embracing  almost  every  kind  and  variety  of 
dog,  foreign  and  native.  It  is  a  unique  collection  in  which  the 
Queen  is  said  to  take  much  interest. 

The  dairy  and  farm  buildings  are  extensive,  and  combine  every 
accommodation  and  modern  improvement.  The  great  park  con- 
tains 1800  acres  and  is  much  admired  for  its  varied  and  picturesque 
scenery.  This  park  was  a  famous  place  as  early  as  the  12th  cen- 
tury, when  Henry  J I  not  only  kept  his  deer  here,  as  the  legend 
goes,  but  "diverse  strange  beastes,  which  were  sent  unto  hime 
from  foreigne  countries  farre  distante,  such  as  Hones,  lepardes, 
linxes  and  porknpines." 

The  park  is  at  present  well  stocked  with  deer  and  pheasants 
which  furnish  excellent  shooting  and  a  constant  supply  of  game 
for  the  Queen's  household.  In  this  park  lie  the  Home  and  Shaw 
farms,  two  of  the  model  farms  of  Prince  Albert.  The  only  work 
of  art  in  the  park  is  a  colossal  equestrian  statue  of  George  III, 
which  terminates  the  '^'long  walk"  at  a  distance  of  at  least  three 
miles  from  the  castle.  There  is  a  handsome  school  building  near 
the  farms  in  which  the  children  of  the  servants  connected  with  the 
castle  and  property  are  educated.  It  was  established  by  Prmce 
Albert  The  boys  receive  a  good  English  education  and  are  in- 
structed in  the  practical  operations  of  farming  and  gardenings 
while  the  girls  are  taught  sewing,  ornamental  needle  work  and 
domestic  aifairs. 

In  the  southern  extremity  of  the  grounds  lies  the  celebrated  lake 
entitled  Virginia  Water,  the  lovely  natural  scenery  of  which  has 
been  heightened  by  the  aid  of  art.  A  road  has  been  constructed 
around  the  lake,  so  that  all  the  best  views  may  be  seen  in  an  after- 
noon drive.     The  shade  trees  are  principally  larch,  pine  and  fir. 

At  the  head  of  the  lake  the  road  crosses  an  embankment  having 
a  rustic  stone  fence  on  one  side,  covered  with  moss  and  ivy,  and 
from  which  a  road  leads  over  a  bridge  across  the  water  and  to  the 
iMshing  temple,  an  elegant  pavilion^  surrounded  by  ground's  or- 


58  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

namented  with  fountains,  flowers,  plants  and  statuary.  The  roof 
is  painted  in  various  colors  and  ornamented  with  dragons  and 
other  grotesque  figures.  This  building  was  erected  for  the  use  of 
George  IV  and  those  members  of  his  family  and  household  who 
were  fond  of  angling.  The  lake  is  sufficiently  large  to  admit  of 
piscatorial  amusements  upon  a  large  scale.  In  a  romantic  glen 
below  the  lake  stands  a  fine  ornamental  ruin  styled  "the  temple 
of  the  gods." 

The  scenery  here  is  singularly  wild  and  sweet.  It  is  a  kind  of 
sacred  valley  of  delightful  solitude,  which  makes  one  dream  of 
nymphs  and  shepherds. 

A  more  delightful  country  than  that  in  the  vicinity  of  Windsor 
we  have  nowhere  looked  upon.  The  scenery,  though  not  roman- 
tic, is  extremely  pleasant.  The  winding  Thames  pursues  its  course 
through  fertile  meadows  and  well  cultivated  fields,  with  a  back 
ground  of  sloping  hills  and  woodland  heights.  A  favorite  resort 
of  the  pent-up  denizens  of  London  for  a  day's  outing,  a  thought- 
ful man  finds  abundant  material  for  study,  whether  wandering 
beneath  the  wide  spreading  trees  of  the  parks,  basking  in  the  sun- 
shine of  the  castle  walls  or  walking  along  the  streets  of  the  good, 
quiet  town.  Not  only  will  the  busy  crowd  of  passers  by,  the  scenes 
of  excitement  presented,  and  the  incidents  of  each  moment  suggest 
reflection,  but  the  houses  will  be  as  books  with  open  leaves  full  of 
moral  instruction  and  practical  hints.  Those  dwelling  places  are 
proofs  and  expressions  of  ingenuity,  skill  and  social  habits,  and 
thus  they  illustrate  the  superior  nature,  the  inventive  mind,  and 
the  soul  of  sympathy  and  affection  with  which  God  has  endowed 
man.  How  diversified  are  the  habitations  in  architecture,  style 
and  appearance !  under  what  different  circumstances,  from  what 
various  motives,  for  what  diversified  ends  were  they  planned  and 
built  ?  They  remind  one  of  the  innumerable  forms,  the  many 
tinted  hues  of  man's  condition,  characteristics  and  feelings.  What 
changes  have  occurred  since  the  edifices  were  reared  !  What  a 
new  era  has  dawned  on  our  civilization  since  yonder  time-worn 
mansion  was  raised  !  How  many  have  passed  into  eternity  since 
then!  What  changeful  aspects  have  the  families  within  those 
walls  presented  from  time  to  time !  People  have  come  and  gone, 
children  have  been  born,  parents  have  died  ;  the  rooms  have 
witnessed  weddings  and  funerals,  joys  and  sorrows.  The  contrast 
between  the  outward  look  of  some  of  these  abodes  and  the  inner 
feelings  of  the  occupants,  how  startling  !  Here  perhaps,  where 
all  seems  so  splendid,  where  many  a  proud  equipage  sweeps  up 
to  the  door  and  powdered  footmen  rise  at  the  rap, and  distinguished 
visitors  are  announced  and  aristocratic  names  echo  in  the  halls, 
hearts   are   wasting   with   ambition,  envy,  disappointment,  fear. 


RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES.  59 

shame,  remorse  ;  whereas  in  yonder  humble  tenement,  peace  may 
dwell,  for  "Faith  shuts  the  door  at  night,  and  mercy  opens  it  in 
the  morning."  The  houses  of  princes  and  peasants  exhibit  alike 
the  same  moral  phenomena. 

Here  we  bid  adieu  to  our  didactics,  to  Windsor,  the  town  and 
castle.  Windsor  Castle  !  Its  antiquities  and  its  pleasantness  can- 
not be  comprehended  in  a  visit.  Its  annals,  memoirs,  legends, 
would  fill  volumes  and  they  must  be  pondered  ere  one  can  enter 
into  the  spirit  and  philosophy  of  its  history,  or  understand  the 
famous  men  who  have  figured  in  its  courts.  Let  no  one,  however, 
be  kept  back  from  a  visit — not  even  the  bird  of  passage,  or  the 
summer  tourist,  for  the  visitor  of  a  single  day  will  see  much  to 
deeply  interest,  though  he  may  see  more  that  he  does  not  under- 
stand. He  will  come  away  in  any  case  with  a  fund  of  knowledge 
which,  though  a  little  mixed  and  undigested,  is  yet  strangely 
pleasing.  Stored  up  in  the  memory  these  experiences  will  con- 
stitute the  agreeable  musings  of  old  age.  If  at  times  when  recall- 
ing the  past,  melancholy  should  mingle  with  the  retrospections,  as 
is  apt  to  be  the  case,  it  will  be  found  to  have  something  in  it 
sweeter  even  than  pleasure. 


CHAPTER  VI. 


THE  INAUGURATION  OF  THE  SECOND  WORLD'S  FAIR  IN  LONDON- 
THE  FINE  ART  DEPARTMENT — AMERICAN  EXHIBITORS — 
LETTER    TO    THE    TIMES — NEW-MADE    FRIENDS. 


The  opening  of  the  great  international  exhibition  of  1862  occur- 
red during  our  sojourn  in  London  The  only  notes  of  this  grand 
affair  which  we  have  are  in  the  form  of  two  brief  letters  to  a  friend 
in  Virginia,  from  which  we  make  the  following  extracts :  "The 
international  exhibition  was  inaugurated  in  this  place  on.!  the  ist 
of  May.  Nothing  could  have  been  more  propitious  than  the 
weather  on  the  opening  day.  The  sky  was  calm  and  cloudless, 
the  air  bright  and  genial.     For  weeks  before  the  ist,  a  continuous 


60  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

Stream  of  visitors  had  been  pouring  into  London  from  every 
quarter.  The  papers  had  already  announced  the  arrival  of  Fred- 
erick William,  Crown  Prince  of  Prussia,  of  Prince  Oscar  of  Swe- 
den and  Queen  Christiana,  of  Spain,  with  their  respective  suites. 
The  Japanese  Embassy  was  also  here^  minus  the  ubiquitous 
"Tommy,"  who  created  such  a  stir  among  the  spinsters  of  New 
York  ;  there  were  commissioners  from  almost  every  country.  It 
was  apparent  to  me  long  before  the  opening  day  that  this  great 
and  noble  enterprise  would  be  a  complete  success. 

I  left  my  lodgings,  39  Bedford  Square,  about  ten  o'clock  in  the 
forenoon,  and  found  the  streets  filled  with  gaily  dressed  people 
wending  their  way  to  the  West-end.  On  reaching  Hyde  Park 
corner,  I  saw  tens  of  thousands  who  had  already  assembled. 
Flags  were  suspended  across  the  streets  and  floated  from  windows 
which  were  gracefully  decorated  with  awnings  and  filled  with 
cheerful  faces.  In  the  distance  were  seen  the  lofty  domes  of  the 
exhibition  building,  enlivened  by  the  flags  of  every  nation.  The 
procession  of  carriages  with  elegantly  dressed  ladies,  extended 
from  Apsley  House  (the  Duke  of  WeUington's)  in  the  direction 
of  Brampton  and  the  marble  arch,  far  as  the  eye  coutd  reach,. 
The  road  from  Buckingham  Palace  up  Constitution  Hill  was  lined 
by  a  dense  mass  of  human  beings  in  holiday  attire  ;  along  the 
whole  route  detachments  of  horse  guards  in  their  brilliant  uni- 
forms, and  metropolitan  police  were  interspersed  through  the 
crowd,  the  whole  forming  a  scene  of  gaiety,  excitement  and  con- 
fusion of  the  most  pleasant  and  exhiliratin<^  character.  London 
was  evidently  in  all  her  glory. 

Leaving  the  Park  I  took  a  position  near  the  entrance  of  the 
building,  where  I  had  an  excellent  opportunity  of  observing  the 
distinguished  arrivals.  The  chief  object  of  interest  with  the  masses 
seemed  to  be  the  Queen's,  or  what  was  styled  the  Royal  party,, 
the  Ministers  of  State  and  the  Lord  Mayor,  and  as  each  of  these 
arrived,  the  delighted  multitude  loudly  cheered — made  the  welkin 
ring.  The  coaches  containing  the  Royal  party  were  draped  in 
black,  and  the  occupants  and  servants  were  in  deep  mourning. 
The  contrast  presented  by  the  mournful  procession  to  the  gay  and 
brilliant  equipages  by  which  it  was  preceded  was  deeply  impres- 
sive, and  suggested  many  painful  associations  in  connection  with 
Prince  Albert,  with  whom  these  enterprises — international  exhibi- 
tions— originated.  The  Royal  carriages  contained  Prince  Fred- 
erick William,  who  wore  the  uniform  of  a  Prussian  General,  and 
Prince  Oscar  of  Sweden,  with  their  respective  suites.  The  Prince 
of  Wales,  whom  it  was  hoped  would  be  present  and  officiate  in  the 
opening  ceremonies,  in  place  of  his  father,  was,  to  the  general  re- 
gret, absent  in  Egypt.     It  is  said  that  he  was  sent  abroad  to  divert 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  01 

his  mind  and  heart  from  a  young  lady,  the  daughter  of  a  distin- 
guished Cambridge  barrister,  with  whom  he  became  acquainted, 
and  for  whom  he  formed  a  passionate  attachment  while  at  the 
University,  and  with  whom  he  wished  to  "link  his  fate" — the  mar- 
riage act  of  George  III  to  the  contrary  notwithstanding. 

The  Royal  party,  government  officials,  distinguished  foreigners 
and  others  to  the  number  of  about  30,000,  having  assembled  in 
the  building  at  one  o'clock,  the  procession  was  formed  in  what 
was  styled  "Procession  Court,"  and  after  a  grand  flourish  of 
trumphets,  took  up  the  line  of  march  for  the  spot  from  which  the 
Exhibition  was,  with  imposing  ceremony,  to  be  declared  open. 

As  the  procession  moved  on,  Lord  Palmerston,  who  is  a  popu- 
lar favorite,  was  repeatedly  cheered,  as  also.  Lord  Derby,  who  is 
a  feeble  looking  old  man  who  gets  along  by  the  aid  of  a  cane. 
Nothing  could  exceed  the  brilliancy  of  the  spectacle  presented  by 
the  moving  crowd  in  which  the  uniforms  of  soldiers  were  mixed 
with  the  black  gowns  of  the  Judges  and  the  white  robes  of  the 
Doctors  of  music  and  the  ten  thousand  hues  of  the  ladies'  Spring 
dresses. 

When  the  Commissioners  had  taken  their  seats  the  first  verse  of 
the  National  Anthem  was  sung  by  more  than  2000  musicians,  and 
then  the  special  music  composed  for  the  occasion  to  the  following 
appropriate  words  by  Alfred  Tennyson,  Poet  Laureate. 

Uplift  a  thousand  voices  full  and  sweet 
-    In  this  wide  Hall  with  Earth's  inventions  stored 
And  praise  thee,  Universal  Lord^ 

Who  lets  once  more  in  peace  the  nations  meet,.  .; 

Where  science,  art,  and  labour  have  outpour'd  .  j 

Their  myriad  horns  of  plenty  at  our  feet. 

O,  silent  father  of  our  King  to  be, 
Mourn'd  in  this  golden  hour  of  Jubilee, 
For  this,  for  all  we  weep  our  thanks  to  thee  I 

The  world  compelling  plan  was  thine, 

And  lo  !  the  long  laborious  miles 

Of  Palace  ;  lo !  the  giant  aisles. 

Rich  in  model  and  design  ; 

Harvest  tool  and  husbandry, 

Loom  and  wheel  and  engin'ry, 

Secrets  of  the  duller  mine, 

Steel  and  gold,  and  corn  and  wine 

Fabric  rough,  or  Fairy  fine, 

Sunny  tokens  of  the  line,  ; 


62  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

Polar  marvels  and  a  feast 

Of  wonder,  out  of  West  and  East, 

And  shapes  and  hues  of  art  divine  ! 

All  of  beauty,  all  of  use 

That  our  fair  planet  can  produce. 

Brought  from  under  every  star 
I  Blown  from  over  every  main, 

And  mix't  as  life  is  mix't  with  pain, 
1  The  works  of  peace  with  the  works  of  war. 

O  yes,  the  wise  who  think,  the  wise  who  reign 

From  growing  commerce  loose  her  latest  chain. 

And  let  the  fair  white-winged  peace-maker  fly 

To  happy  havens  under  all  the  sky, 

And  mix  the  seasons  and  the  golden  hours, 

Till  each  man  finds  his  own  in  all  men's  good, 

And  all  men  work  in  noble  brotherhood, 

And  ruling  by  obeying  nature's  powers, 

And  gathered  all  the  fruits  of  peace  and  crown' d  with  all  the  flowers. 

The  Earl  of  Granville  then  delivered  an  opening;  speech  in  which 
he  referred  in  eloquent  terms  to  the  National  grief  at  the  death  of 
Prince  Albert,  and  to  the  particular  loss  sustained  by  the  Commis- 
sioners of  the  exhibition  in  their  hrduous  labors,  and  to  the  popu- 
lar disappointment  at  the  absence  of  the  Queen.  He  concluded 
with  a  brief  history  of  the  circumstances  connected  with  the  reali- 
zation of  the  scheme  for  holding  the  Second  Great  International 
Exhibition  in  England. 

The  Duke  of  Cambridge  replied,  reading  an  address  of  intense 
respectability  as  to  the  language  and  style,  but  exceedingly  dull 
and  common  place,  after  which,  'technicalities,' the  Exhibition  was 
declared  open,  amidst  the  cheers  of  hundreds  of  thousands  in  and 
out  of  the  building  and  repeated  salutes  of  Artillery  in  the  Park. 

I  cannot,  of  course,  attempt  any  descriptton  of  the  multitudi- 
nous display  of  whatever  is  most  remarkable  in  British  and  For- 
eign products,  as  the  results  of  the  industry  and  art  of  every  coun- 
try— all  contained  in  this  gigantic  building  —volumes  are  required 
for  a  simple  catalogue. 

The  coup  d'  oil,  standing  under  either  of  the  domes  of  the  vast 
Exhibition  building  itself  and  looking  down  the  nave,  is  one  of  al- 
most unequalled  beauty.  The  fine  proportions  and  mouldings 
of  the  columns  make  the  immense  vista  appear  as  if  looking  along 
a  kind  of  iron  lace  work.  As  1  wandered  through  the  vast  area 
of  this  great  building,  before  countless  stalls,  my  eyes  dazzled  and 


RAMBLING     REMINISCEN'CES.  63. 

my  senses  filled  with  admiration,  I  felt  the  lull  force  of  the  adage, 
"peace  hath  her  victories  no  less  renowned  than  war."  What  sight 
could  be  more  glorious,  what  scene  more  noble  than  that  here, 
presented  of  the  peaceful  rivalry  of  the  nations?  What  marks 
more  strongly  the  progress  of  the  age,  the  coming  of  that  new 
era  of  universal  brotherhood,  in  which  the  gentle  spirit  ot  Christi- 
anity, with  all  its  humanizing  and  ennobling  influences  is  to  super- 
cede the  barbarism  of  the  past,  and  to  banish  forever  those  relics 
which  survive  in  the  brutal  contests  of  the  present,  in  whichniight 
makes  right,  and  virtue  and  patriotism  are  crushed  to  the  Earth 
by  the  power  of  tyrants,  or  the  frenzy  of  fanaticism. 

Any  attempt  at  a  description  of  the  infinite  variety  of  articles  on 
exhibition,  as  I  have  said,  would  be  absurd  and  fail  to  attract  at- 
tention at  this  remote  period,  but  the  following  extract  from  a  sec- 
ond letter  written  to  our  Virginia  friend,  in  May,  1862,  will  not  be 
altogether  without  interest  as  it  contains  some  information  as  to 
one  particular  department,  that  of  Art,  and  the  contributions  to  it 
of  a  fellow  countryman  then  in  London,  and  with  whom  we  form- 
ed a  pleasant  acquaintance,  and  the  story  of  whose  life  is  one  of 
vigor,  perseverance  and  energy  : 

"The  fine  art  department  of  the  International  Exhibition  of  1862, 
presents  for  the  first  time  in  the  history  of  the  arts,  a  collection  of 
works  of  contemporary  artists  from  every  civilized  nation.  An 
opportunity  is  thus  afforded  the  observant  and  reflective  mind  of 
comparing  the  styles  of  the  various  schools,  and  leading  to  a  pleas- 
ant and  instructive  investigation  of  the  causes  which  have  produc- 
ed those  peculiarities  and  excellencies  by  which  they  are  distin- 
guished. The  walls  of  this  vast  department  are  adorned  by  the 
labors  of  men  of  the  greatest  genius,  and  afford  space  for  the 
works  of  persons  noted  for  some  bold  innovations  upon  the  gen- 
erally acknowledged  principles  of  art. 

Without  attempting  to  give  any  lengthened  review  of  these  va- 
ried productions  or  the  impressions  by  which  they  have  individu- 
ally affected  me,  it  may  be  at  least  useful  to  give  you  their  com- 
bined result  upon  my  mind.  They  njay  be  serviceable  to  the  fu- 
ture cause  of  the  arts  in  our  own  States.  The  styles  cf  "schools" 
are  quite  as  distinctly  marked  as  the  boundary  lines  which  separate 
one  country  from  another ;  for  no  observant  eye  can  fail  after  a 
few  days  examination  of  these  schools  to  recognize  their  distinc- 
tive differences,  and  to  see  that  their  characteristic  qualities  are 
the  effects  of  that  system  of  teaching  which  prevails  in  the  art 
institutions  of  each  country.  Hence  it  is  that  whilst  Sir  Joshua 
Reynolds  was  at  the  head  of  the  English  Academy,  the  young  ar- 
tists, whether  pupils  or  not  of  that  institution,  followed  his  manner 
and  received  instruction  as  coming  from  an   oracle   in   art.     It   in 


64  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

thus  that  the  great  mass  in  every  profession  are  certain  to  follow, 
many  slavishly,  the  theories  and  practice  of  those  who  either  from 
genius,  from  manag^ement  or  from  Royal  patronage  liave  attained 
to  distinction  and  high  rewards.  So  that  the  characteristics  of  a 
school  are  changeful,  and  according  to  the  accidents  of  the  success 
of  individuals.  At  one  period  the  method  of  Sir  Joshua  influ- 
ences the  great  body  of  young  aspirants,  at  another  it  is  Sir  Thom- 
as Lawrence  who  rules  supreme.  Then  VVilkie  leads  the  way  for 
a  host.  Finally,  the  English  school  has  changed  entirely  from  the 
masculine,  dashing  and  etTective  style  of  Reynolds,  until  it  has 
arrived  at  the  effeminate,  dry  and  ineffective  manner  of  those  who 
style  themselves,  however  inappropriately,  "Pre-Raphaelites." 

These  facts  are  readily  gleaned  from  the  large  number  of  pic- 
tures displayed  in  the  English  department  of  the  Exhibition,  which 
extends  over  a  period  of  a  hundred  years,  during  which  they  were 
executed.  The  departments  of  the  French  and  other  foreign 
schools,  as  they  contain  only  the  work  of  living  painters,  give  a 
much  more  restricted  scope  for  the  study  or  elucidation  of  the 
principles  which  1  have  ventured  to  assert.  In  the  Krench  school 
we  see  no  work  which  was  inspired  by  the  dry,  academic  and  classic 
practice  of  David,  Nicholas  Poussin,  or  Le  Brun — their  works  were 
those  of  academicians  and  founders  of  the  earliest  schools  of 
France.  I  see  now  in  their  stead  the  influence  of  later  masters 
such  as  Horace  Vernet,  De  Laroche,  Ary,  Scheffer,  the  one  differ- 
ing as  much  as  possible  from  the  other. 

The  Belgian  school  being  essentially  French  in  character  and 
derived  from  the  teachings  of  Parisian  masters,  follows  the  same 
law  and  adds  its  testimony  to  the  justness  of  my  views.  The  Tus- 
can school  presents  in  its  leading  work  by  Ussi,  the  Fruits  of  the 
Florentine  Academy,  under  the  late  Presidency  of  Bezzuoli.  Spain, 
Russia  and  other  countries  of  Europe  cannot  be  said  to  possess 
any  school  whatever,  their  leading  artists  having  generally  been 
students  in  Paris  and  their  style  and  excellencies  attributable  en- 
tirely to  its  professors. 

The  American  department  contains  a  few  paintings,  six  only, 
two  by  Cropsey  and  four  by  Kellogg,  two  portraits  and  two  ideal 
pieces.  The  landscapes  by  Cropsey,  one  representing  an  Autumn 
on  the  Hudson,  and  the  other  a  Cane  brake  in  Louisiana,  are  two 
of  the  finest  specimens  of  this  kind  of  painting  in  the  Exhibition. 
The  atmospheric  tints  peculiar  to  the  American  Autumn,  and  the 
rich  foliage  of  the  forest  and  the  brilliant  sunset  sky  are  admirably 
painted. 

Kellogg's  portraits  are  quiet  and  natural  in  color  with  serene 
and  thoughtful  expressions,  the  draperies  well  cast  and  carefully 
worked  up.  and  the  drawing   admirably  executed.     The  "Flower 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENSES.  65 

of  the  Seraglio"  represents  a  Turkish  girl  seated  at  an  open  wind- 
cvv,  evidently  contemplating  with  delight  a  flower  which  grows  in 
a  vase  placed  upon  a  table  by  the  side  of  the  Divan  upon  which 
she  reposes.  A  glimpse  of  the  neighboring  buildings  is  seen 
through  the  latticework  of  the  window.  Atfirst  view  of  thispicture 
I  was  struck  with  the  power  and  brilliancy  of  the  sunlight  which 
pervaded  it.  This  quality  of  light  brought  to  my  remembrance 
several  paintings  belonging  to  the  French  school  which,  over  all 
others,  is  pre-eminent  in  this  essential  and  rare  beauty  in  painting. 

Passing  this  piece  I  next  saw  his  "Bath  Scene."  This  is  a  sub- 
ject calling  for  many  of  the  higher  qualities  in  an  artist,  a  fore- 
shortened naked  figure ;  one-half  in  a  powerful  light  and  the 
other  in  reflected  light,  partially  derived  from  it,  the  whole  figure 
being  surrounded  by  stuffs  of  the  greatest  variety  of  texture  and 
rich  and  varied  colors.  This  principal  figure  is  a  girl  reclining 
after  the  pleasures  of  the  Oriental  bath,  and  apparently  just  drop- 
ping into  a  gentle  slumber  amid  the  cushions  which  supported  her. 

This  principal  figure  and  chief  point  of  interest  is  quite  upon 
one  side  of  the  picture,  the  attendant  features  being  situated  on 
the  other  side,  a  very  difficult  and  rare  system  of  composition. 
This  important  painting  which  strikes  the  spectator  at  once  with 
pleasure,  is  one  requiring  daring  and  educated  qualities  in  the  ar- 
tist, both  of  which  have  been  successfully  illustrated  in  the  piece 
which  seems  an  emanation  of  the  loving  spirit  which  led  the  an- 
cient artists  to  immortal  renown,  breathing  a  devotion  to  the  truth 
of  the  subject  chosen,  which  works  out  the  result  from  an  innate 
perception  of  beauty  and  propriety,  and  creates  of  necessity  a 
manner  of  execution  peculiarly  its  own,  untrammeled  by  the  dicta 
of  academies  or  by  the  tyranny  which  tradition  so  often  exercises 
over  the  artist  mind.  The  pleasure  which  the  study  of  the  works 
of  an  artist  who  combined  so  much  of  freshness  of  thought,  vari- 
ety of  style  and  beauty  of  execution  was  enough  to  make  me  de- 
sire to  know  something  of  the  routine  or  system  of  education 
which  had  produced  these  happy  results,  and  as  Mr.  Kellogg  was 
an  American,  1  soon  found  myself  pursuing  my  investigations  in 
his  studio  and  amidst  the  evidences  of  his  long  and  devoted  labors. 
From  my  notes  of  conversation  with  him,  the  following  brief  ac- 
count is  given  of  the  method  he  has  pursued,  and  by  which  he  has 
reached  his  high  position  in  the  practice  of  art.  The  example  of  his 
career  cannot  but  be  serviceable  to  the  youthful  artist  of  our  coun- 
try, who  is  striving  amidst  the  darkness  around  him  to  fix  on  some 
system  of  study  which  will  ultimately  secure  his  success. 

Mr.  Kellogg,  while  still  a  lad  commenced  the  pursuit  of  art,  and 
though  unaided  by  either  fortune,  powerful  friends,  teachers  or 
examples   succeeded    in  earning   a   precarious   livelihood   in    the 


66  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

north  western  States  which  at  that  time,  thirty  years  a^o,  lacked 
every  means  of  instruction  in  the  arts.  The  Cincinnati  Gazette 
of  January  9th,  1873,  in  an  article  referring  to  his  early  predilec- 
tion for  the  arts  remarks  "some  fifteen  years  ago  in  an  old  and 
leaning  frame  building  that  stood,  or  rather  pretended  to  stand  on 
a  somewhat  noted  part  of  Main  street,  and  whose  second  story 
was  reached  by  a  rickety  flight  of  steps  on  the  outside,  were  types, 
cases,  presses  and  all  the  etceteras  of  one  of  our  old  time  printing 
offices.  And  in  this  ancient  office,  at  one  of  the  cases  aforenamed, 
stood  a  bright  eyed,  fresh  cheeked,  mischief  loving  boy,  some 
twelve  or  fitteen  years  of  age.  who  had  "gone"  (as  the  phrase  was 
when  youngsters  here  were  too  proud  and  independent  to  be  "ap- 
prenticed" and  mothers  too  weak  to  tolerate  the  idea  of  having 
their  sons  bound  out)  to  learn  the  "art,  trade  or  mystery"  of  a 
printer.  With  all  his  life  and  mischief  he  was  yet  a  dreamy  lad  ; 
and  notwithstanding  that  he  was  not  lazy,  but  on  the  contrary  clev- 
er and  active,  he  yet  made  but  slow  progress  between  the  Monday 
mornings  and  Saturday  evenings,  in  the  important  work  of  setting 
type.  This  was  a  mystery  that  required  a  little  investigation,  and 
on  such  examination  taking  place,  it  was  found  that  some  accom- 
modating body  had  constructed  a  convenient  drawer  under  his 
type  case,  which  was  capacious  enough  to  hold  an  old  violin,  an 
eight  keyed  flute,  two  or  three  music  books,  divers  pieces  of  cray- 
on and  many  sheets  of  drawing  paper,  many  of  which  were  cov- 
ered with  grotesque  gVoups  of  'boss'  and  his  'jours,'  and  carica- 
tured likenesses  of  that  considerate  and  good  natured  class  of 
gentlemen  loungers,  who  have  from  time  immemorial  been  in  the 
habit  of  passing  their  morning  hours  around  the  tables  of  Editors 
to  assist  in  hunting  out  news.  Withal  the  youth  mentioned  was 
good  natured  and  genial,  and  so  when  remonstrated  with  frankly 
confessed  that  his  love  of  music  and  the  pencil  was  greater  than 
his  regard  for  type,  and  it  was  decided  that  he  or  his  friends  for 
him  had  mistaken  his  vocation." 

It  was  shortly  after  this  period  that  urged  by  a  love  of  painting 
and  a  noble  ambition  he  left  the  West  and  worked  his  way  to  the 
Eastern  States  in  search  of  examples  and  teachers.  Here,  how- 
ever, his  necessities  forced  him  to  abide  several  years  in  the  in- 
terior of  the  State  of  New  Jersey,  which  was  as  destitute  of  the 
means  of  instruction  which  he  sought  as  were  the  slates  of  the  far 
West.  His  success  in  painting  portraits  enabled  him  in  a  short 
time  to  reach  the  State  Capital,  where  he  made  influential  friends 
and  obtained  a  commission  from  the  Legislature  to  execute  a  largi 
portrait  of  Washington  for  the  assen^bly  rooms  of  the  Statr 
House,  which  portrait  gave  such  satisfaction  that  he  was  honored 
by  the  Legislature  with  a  unanimous  vote  of  thanks.      Instead   oi 


RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES.  67 

resting- a  moment  contented  with  the  approval  of  his  abiHties,  he 
used  the  means  it  furnished  him  to  obtain  the  instruction  he  so 
much  desired.  He  visited  Washington  City  and  there  secured 
the  favorable  consideration  of  the  Cabinet  of  President  Van 
Buren,  among:  whose  leading  members  was  Hon.  Joel  R.  Poinsett, 
Secretary  of  War,  a  man  of  great  learning  and  cultivated  taste, 
who  warmly  interested  himself  in  promoting  the  honorable  views 
of  the  struggling  artist.  The  result  was  that  the  President  and 
Cabinet  secured  for  him  the  friendly  notice  of  the  Professors  in 
the  Military  Academy  at  West  Point.  Giving  up  the  pursuit  of 
painting  for  the  present  he  proceeded  to  West  Point,  where 
through  the  gratuitous  and  able  teachings  of  the  Professors  he 
was  enabled  in  the  course  of  a  year  to  lay  the  foundation  of  a 
knowledge  of  perspective  and  other  sciences  connected  with  the 
art  of  design.  With  a  mind  trained  to  some  system  in  the  pur- 
suit of  a  most  difficult  art,  he  resumed  the  practice,  Shortly  after 
he  went  to  Tennessee  and  painted  the  likeness  of  General  Jack- 
son, ex- President  of  the  United  States,  and  the  friendly  interces- 
sion of  the  old  hero  resulted  in  obtaining  for  him  several  valuable 
commissions  from  the  Government  at  Washington,  by  whom  he 
was  finally  entrusted  with  despatches  for  the  Minister  at  Naples. 
'  Here  he  found  himself  in  the  glorious  land  of  art,  but  without 
means  and  only  one  important  commission.  He  diligently  pur- 
sued his  studies  for  three  years  amidst  difficulties  and  privations  of 
the  most  discouraging  character,  and  as  his  means  would  not  en- 
able him  to  spend  anything  upon  living  masters,  he  determined  to 
seek  from  the  examples  of  ancient  art  around  him,  some  knowl- 
edge of  the  principles  by  which  they  were  produced.  In  the 
course  of  two  years,  he  had  by  copying  some  of  their  best  works 
and  by  a  few  original  pictures  acquired  the  means  to  study  the 
human  figure  from  living  models  and  to  obtain  in  the  Hospitals  of 
Florence  a  practical  knowledge  of  the  structure,  osteological  and 
anatomical,  of  the  human  form  and  also  to  sketch  and  take  elab- 
orate notes  of  the  famous  paintings  in  oil  and  in  fresco  which  have 
given  renown  to  the  most  splendid  palaces  of  that  great  seat  of 
medieval  art.  He  had  sent  original  paintings  to  the  Royal  Acad- 
emy of  Florence  which  received  comphmentary  notices  of  the 
press  and  pointed  out  such  admirable  copies  of  Raphael's  works  as 
to  have  obtained  commissions  enough  to  allow  him  to  venture  to 
spend  a  season  of  study  among  the  churches  and  other  deposito- 
ries of  art  throughout  Lombardy  and  Venice.  Determined  now 
to  see  something  of  the  arts  of  other  countries  he  made  a  visit  to 
Egypt  and  labored  with  assiduity  in  studying  and  drawing  from 
its  mysterious  and  mighty  ruins.  He  then  continued  his  journey, 
sketch  and  note  book  always  in  hand,  into    the   desert   of  Arabia 


68  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

Petrae  to  the  Convent  of  Mt.  Sinai  where  he  spent  some  time  in 
exploring  this  most  interesting  region  of  the  ancient  world.  It  is 
sufficient  evidence  of  his  thoughtful  investigation  and  enthu- 
siastic character  to  peruse  his  journal  of  this  journey — a  por- 
tion relating  to  this  region  being  of  such  interest  to  Biblical 
scholars  as  to  find  a  place  in  Dr.  Kitto's  work  on  the  Scripture 
lands.  After  crossing  the  Desert  of  Hebron,  he  made  a  complete 
tour  of  the  Holy  Land  and  returned  to  Italy,  enriched  by  a  large 
collection  of  sketches  of  oriental  scenes  and  characters.  The  next 
year  his  love  of  art  and  adventure  took  him  again  to  the  East. 
He  remained  some  time  in  Constantinople,  where  the  American 
Minister  extended  to  him  the  hospitalities  of  a  home  at  the  Lega- 
tion and  the  English  Ambassador,  Sir  Statford  Canning  and  his 
accomplished  wife.  Lady  Canning,  took  a  lively  interest  in  his  suc- 
cess. It  was  here  that  he  formed  the  acquaintance  of  Mr.  A.  H. 
Layard,  who  afterwards  disinterred  Nineveh,  with  whom  he  made 
an  extensive  tour  in  Asia  Minor,  which  laid  the  foundation  of  a 
mutual  and  lasting  friendship.  He  now  returned  to  the  United 
States  from  which  he  had  been  absent  seven  years,  where  he  re- 
mained four  years  prosecuting  his  profession,  after  which  he  spent 
three  years  more  in  Italy  studying  the  old  masters.  He  then  re- 
moved to  Paris  determined  to  glean  all  that  was  possible  from  the 
theories  and  practices  of  the  most  excellent  of  all  schools  of  mod- 
ern art.  After  a  residence  of  four  years  he  came  to  London  where 
he  has  been  established  for  the  last  five  years. 

I  have  thus  traced  briefly  the  career  of  an  artist  who  starting 
from  a  sphere  where  art  was  literally  unknown,  and  without  any 
means  of  obtaining  either  instruction  or  fame,  has  travelled  exten- 
sively through  remote  countries,  and  is  now  settled  with  honor  in 
the  Metropolis  of  the  modern  world,  with  port-follios  filled  with 
subjects  sufficient  to  keep  his  pencil  profitably  employed  during 
the  remainder  of  his  life. 

Probably  nothing  could  give  stranger  proof  of  Mr.  Kellogg's 
accurate  knowledge  of  the  works  of  the  old  painters  than  the  pos- 
session of  so  many  of  their  best  productions,  for  it  is  only  by  such 
knowledge  that  a  man  of  his  limited  means  is  able  to  become  their 
owner.  His  collection  is  of  rare  excellence,  many  of  the  pictures 
costing  him  a  very  small  sum,  having  been  found  in  the  most  un- 
likely places,  and  sometimes  in  a  dingy  or  injured  condition — for 
some,  however,  as  they  came  from  well  known  galleries  by  public 
sale,  something  approaching  their  real  value  had  to  be  paid.  A 
few  which  have  excited  the  interest  of  the  most  enlightened  artist 
and  critics  are  of  such  great  importance,  that  I  may  be  excused  for 
speaking  at  some  length  as  to  the  manner  by  which  Mr.  Kellogg 
obtained  them. 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  69 

When  his  collection  had,  by  slow  deg^rees  and  in  the  course  of 
his  travels  in  the  different  countries  where  they  were  found,  in- 
creased to  the  number  of  more  than  one  hundred  examples  of 
good  masters,  his  atten  tion  was  accidentally  called  in  Paris  to  a 
small  number  of  paintings,  the  property  of  a  Swiss  lady,  who 
upon  the  death  of  her  father  had  brought  them  from  Switzerland 
to  be  disposed  of  for  the  benefit  of  his  heirs.  This  was  in  the  sum- 
mer of  1855.  Owing  to  the  war  in  the  Crimea  and  to  the  distress 
in  financial  circles  it  was  impossible  to  obtain  for  them  the  notice 
they  deserved.  Mr.  Kellogg  examined  them,  and  was  so  convinc- 
ed of  their  value  and  so  reliant  on  his  own  discernment,  that  al- 
though the  price  demanded  for  them  was  thousands  of  dollars  be- 
yond his  means,  he  borrowed  the  money  by  pledging  as  security 
the  whole  of  his  own  collection,  and  that  too,  without  knowing  the 
opinion  of  any  other  person  as  to  the  authenticity  of  the  pictures, 
and  thus  he  became  their  purchaser. 

Among  the  pictures  to  obtain  which  Mr.  Kellogg  had  thus  ad- 
visedly risked  the  whole  of  his  little  fortune,  were  at  least  two 
which'  he  believed  to  be  of  inestimable  value.  One  was  a  "Hero- 
dias,"  by  Leonardo  de  Vinci,  and  the  other  the  "Belle  Jardiniere" 
by  Raphael.  They  had  been  so  long  hidden  in  the  family  of  an 
humble  connoisseur  among  the  mountains  of  Switzerland  as  to 
have  escaped  the  zealous  researches  of  every  biographer  of  those 
two  most  distinguished  masters  of  the  Italian  school. 

He  kept  these  pictures  in  Paris  for  four  years,  where  they  were 
freely  open  to  the  visits  of  all  lovers  of  art ;  the  best  artists  and 
most  impartial  judges  declaring  them  to  be  originals  of  the  high- 
est value.  • 

The '  Bellejardiniere'  had,  however,a  rival  in  a  painting  of  the  same 
subject  in  the  Gallery  of  the  Louvre;  which  though  acknowledged 
to  be  an  inferior  work,  and  its  originality  openly  contested  by  able 
connoisseurs,  had  in  its  favor  the  prestige  of  some  centuries  exist- 
ence in  that  great  museum  of  art,  and  its  authenticity  asserted  by 
the  most  indubitable  documentary  history.  Notwithstanding  these 
generally  received  opinions,  he  engaged  earnestly  upon  the  labor  of 
examining  every  available  record  which  concerned  the  history  of 
that  work.  After  exhausting  the  field  of  research  which  Paris  offered 
to  his  industry,  he  made  a  visit  to  the  famous  exhibition  of  art 
treasures  then  open  at  Manchester  and  to  several  collections  in 
London,  to  acquaint  himself  with  every  work  attributed  to  Raphael 
which  could  there  be  found.  Returning  to  Paris  he  prepared  to 
leave  that  city  and  establish  himself  in  London,  when  Count  de 
Morny  visited  his  collection,  and  was  so  struck  with  the  beauty 
of  the  Raphael  as  to  express  a  wish  to  see  it  by  the  side  ot  the 
picture  in  the  Louvre,  and  through  his  influence  this  was   accom- 


70  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

plished,  and  he  obtained  at  the  same  time  the  long  desired  privi- 
lege for  Mr.  Kellogg  of  making  a  satisfactory  examination  of  the 
two  paintings  side  by  side.  Afier  this  was  done  Mr.  Kellogg  re- 
moved to  London.  Here  his  fine  collection  soon  attracted  the  at- 
tention of  many  noblemen  and  lovers  of  art.  F'or  three  years  he 
pursued  the  study  of  his  subject  and  finally  published  a  pam- 
phlet, giving  the  result  of  his  "Researches  into  the  history  of  a 
painting  by  Raphael  of  Urbino,  entitled  La  Bellejardiniere.  (Pre- 
miere Idee  du  I'eintre.)"  * 

Of  course  these  researches  included  the  history  of  the  Louvre 
painting  and  all  its  traditional  claims  to  authenticity.  In  the  most 
laudable  spirit  of  impartiality  he  abstained  entirely  from  express- 
ing any  opinion  regarding  its  merits,  leaving  these  and  the  record 
of  historical  facts  which  he  gives  to  decide  the  question  of  the  rel- 
ative value  of  the  two  paintings. 

Without  going  further  into  this  interesting  subject,  I  may  briefly 
state  that  the  result  of  the  critical  labors  ot  Mr.  Kellogg  have  been 
to  prove  conclusively  that  his  painting  possesses  stronger  historical 
claims  to  originality  than  that  in  the  Louvre,  and  to  surpass  it  in 
many  of  those  qualities  which  distinguish  Raphael  from  all  other 
painters. 

Through  losses  and  illness  in  his  family,  pecuniary  embarrass- 
ment now  pressed  heavily  upon  him.  Against  those,  however, 
he  battled  manfully,  and  the  Civil  War  in  America  deprived  him 
of  every  assistance  from  his  countrymen.  In  this  most  gloomy 
condition  of  his  affair  he  was  induced  to  dispose  of  the  picture  he 
had  so  long  cherished  and  which  was  so  dear  to  his  artistic  spirit. 
Thus  after  seven  years  sojourn  in  the  studio  of  the  man  who  had 
the  sagacity  to  appreciate  its  character  and  the  courage  to  rescue 
it  from  oblivion,  his  judgment  w.is  at  last  triumphantly  confirmed 
and  his  unswerving  faith  in  its  originality  and  patient  labors  to 
prove  it  to  the  world  adequately  rewarded. 

The  conviction  expressed  in  the  preface  to  the  "Researches"  that 
enlightened  and  impartial  criticism  will  ultimately  secure  for  it  an 
elevated  position  among  the  precious  monuments  of  Italian  Art, 
was  not  founded  on  erroneous  conceptions  of  the  character  of  the 
picture,  for  it  has,  after  passing  the  ordeal  of  the  severe>t  critics  in 
Europe,  been  recognized  as  an  original  and  at  length  reached  an 
elevated  position  among  the  precious  monuments  of  art  which 
composed  the  noble  collection  of  Lord  Ashburton. 

*Vide  Art  Catalogue  published  by  the  trustees  of  South  KensiniJton  .Museum* 

♦Lord  Ashburton  purchased  the  painting  for  two  thousand  guineas  and  left  it 
as  a  special  legacy  in  his  last  will  to  Lady  Ashburton,  It  now  adorns  the  wall* 
of  liath  House^  Piccadilly. 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCEiS.  7 1 

I  have  selected  this  interesting^  incident  from  among  similar  ones 
in  the  career  ol  our  artist  to  testify  to  the  value  of  that  course  of 
study,  which  in  the  absence  of  Academic  instruction,  may  some- 
times lead  to  distinction  in  the  practice  of  art  and  to  a  sound  judg- 
ment in  the  appreciation  of  her  noblest  works. 

Mr  Kellogg's  studio  is  filled  with  works  painted  by  himself  at 
various  periods  under  the  influence  of  the  pictures  of  the 'old 
masters,  which  he  was  at  the  time  studying.  They  illustrate  by 
their  different  qualities  and  subjects,  the  comprehensive  field  which 
his  mind  has  traversed  in  its  search  after  knowledge.  Refreshing 
himself  at  times  from  the  fountain  of  nature,  as  the  greatest  and 
noblest  of  all  teachers,  he  has  secured  himself  from  falling  into 
that  mannerism  which  is  inseperable  from  the  works  of  all  the 
disciples  of  ^ny  one  school. 

I  do  not  mean  to  affirm  that  he  has  pursued  the  only  right  course 
of  study,  since  he  himself  laments  the  loss  of  many  precious  years 
of  his  youth  in  battling  for  bread,  and  that  too  in  a  district  desti- 
tute of  every  means  of  mstruction  in  his  profession.  That  he  has 
attained  his  present  high  position  is  due  entirely  to  his  natural 
talents  and  to  unremitting  labor  and  observation,  wherever  his  lot 
was  cast,  owing  nothing  to  any  advantages  of  study  which  his  own 
country  had  afforded  to  him  in  the  arduous  struggles  of  his 
youth. 

From  the  foregoing  reflections  I  have  been  led  to  conclude  that 
if  a  country  is  ever  to  be  honored  by  the  presence  and  skill  of 
native  artists,  it  must  afford  its  youth  examples  of  the  works  of 
artists  of  every  country  who  have  attained  to  excellence,  and  I 
cannot  too  highly  applaud  the  course  of  the  alumni  of  the  Univer- 
sity of  Virginia  in  founding  an  art  gallery  there.  These  are  as 
necessary  as  is  a  library  in  the  pursuit  of  literature. 

It  is  also  i;nportant  that  some  system  should  be  adopted  whereby 
the  general  principles  of  art  and  the  sciences,  which  are  essential 
to  its  successful  practice,  can  be  taught  in  such  a  manner  as  to 
leave  the  student's  mind  free  from  prejudice  in  fivor  of  any  par- 
ticular master's  style,  whilst  it  gives  him  the  power  of  expressing 
in  the  readiest  way  his  conception  of  subjects  which  shall  hence- 
forth occupy  his  pencil. 

I  au>  inclined  forcibly  to  the  opinion  that  Academies  of  Art  are 
generally  conducted  on  principles  subversive  of  originality  in  the 
minds  of  their  pupils  by  encouraging  the  belief  that  reputation 
and  rewards  are  more  certainly  within  their  reach,  if  they  follow 
the  methods  which  are  practiced  by  successful  academicians  and 
that  their  errors  may  be  avoided  and  every  necessary  instruction 
imparted  by  including  departments  or  Schools  of  Art  in  all  uni- 
versities similar  to  those  of  law  or  medicine. 


72  .  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 


CHAPTER  VII. 


LETTER    TO   THE  "TIMES      REFERRED   TO   IN    PREVIOUS 
CHAPTER— GLADSTONE,    BRIGHT,    ETC.,  ETC. 


Immediately  upon  reaching  London,  Mr.  Yancey  requested  me 
to  write  for  the  papers,  a  letter  correcting  certain  reports  industri- 
ously circulated  in  England  as  to  the  state  of  public  opinion  in 
North  Carolina.  Concurring  with  him  as  to  the  propriety  of  this 
course,  the  following  letter  was  written  and  published  in  the  Lon- 
don Times,  on  the  24th  of  November,  1861: 

Sir: — "I  have  been  greatly  surprised  to  learn  since  my  arrival 
in  London  that  an  effort  has  been  made  through  publications  in 
the  English  press,  to  create  the  impression  that  there  is  much  dis- 
affection towards  the  Confederate  Government  in  all  the  Southern 
States  of  America,  but  particularly  among  the  people  of  North 
Carolina,  and  that  the  proceedmgs  of  what  purports  to  be  a  meet- 
ing of  influential  and  respectable  citizens  of  the  county  of  Hyde, 
in  that  State,  have  been  published  as  authority  for  the  numerous 
statements  made  upon  the  subject. 

I  am  directly  from  the  city  of  Raleigh,  North  Carolina,  having 
come  on  board  the  Confederate  States  war  Steamer,  Nashville, 
which  left  Charleston,  South  Carolina,  on  the  26th  of  October,  and 
cast  anchor  off  the  Itchin,  Southampton,  on  the  21st  of  this  month, 
and  have  been  since  August,  with  the  exception  of  brief  visits  to 
Virginia,  constantly  in  the  eastern  portion  of  the  State,  where  this 
disaffection  is  said  to  exist  and  the  meeting  to  have  taken  place. 
I  need  not  say,  therefore,  how  much  gratified  I  am  that  an  oppor- 
tunity is  afforded  me  of  pronouncing  the  entire  story  utterly  de- 
void of  truth  in  every  particular.  No  such  disaffection  exists  in 
North  Carolina  and  no  such  meeting  has  ever  been  held.  The 
people  of  North  Carolina  are  united  and  enthusiastic  in  the  support 
of  the  Confederate  Government,  and  are  determined,  under  no 
circumstances,  to  ground  their  arms  till  the  independence  t)f  the 
Confederacy  is  acknowledged  by  our  enemy.  .  Before  the  State 
seceded,  there  was  in  North  Carolina,  as  in  every  Southern  State, 
(as  there  will  always  be  in  every  popular  Government,)  a  divided 
popular  sentiment  as  to  the  wisest  policy  to  be  pursued  for  a  re- 
dress of  grievances  suffered  at  the  hands  of  the  Government  of 
the  United  States,  but  the  proclamation  of  Mr.  Lincoln,  in  con- 
travention of  all  law  and  authority,  calling  for  75,000  men,  osten- 


RAMBLING    REMINISCENSES.  73 

sibly  to  'hold,  occupy,  and  possess'  a  few  dilapidated  sea  side  forts 
and  an  armory  at  Harper's  Ferry,  a  force  utterly  disproportioned 
to  the  end  announced,  aroused  the  whole  Southern  people  to  a 
sense  of  their  danger,  and  the  Act  of  Secession  was  passed  in 
North  Carolina  by  a  unanimous  vote  of  the  Legislature.  Subse- 
quently it  was  ratified  by  a  State  Convention  elected  by  a  popular 
vote  and  representing  the  sovereignty  of  the  people.  This  action 
occurred  in  the  month  of  April  last.  Since  that  time  I  have  not 
heard  in  my  extensive  intercourse  with  the  people  a  single  expres- 
sion of  opinion  in  opposition,  but,  on  the  contrary,  a  universal  sen- 
timent of  concurrence  in  its  justice,  propriety  and  necessity. 

Before  I  left  America  the  State  had  sent  to  the  seat  of  war  in 
Virginia,  33,000  volurlteer  troops  fully  armed  and  equipped  (infant- 
ry and  riflemen),  and  a  regiment  of  cavalry,  numbering  1094. 
There  were  6,000  troops  on  the  State  coast,  and  camps  of  instruc- 
tion established  at  Raleigh,  Ridgeway  and  Careysburg.  War  is 
always  popular  and  the  people  were  fired  with  enthusiasm,  so  much 
so  that  the  number  of  volunteers  still  offering  was  so  much  larger 
than  was  needed,  that  Genepal  Martin,  Commander-in-chief  of  the 
State  forces,  had,  under  orders  of  His  Excellency,  Gov,  Clark, 
issued  a  proclamation  informing  the  people  that  no  further  troops 
would  be  mustered  into  service. 

A  simple  statement  of  these  facts  is  a  sufficient  refutation  of  the 
idea  which  Mr.  President  Lincoln  so  earnestly  and  persistently 
seeks  to  create  abroad,  that  there  is  a  Union  party  in  the  Confed- 
erate States.  It  may  suit  his  purposes  to  create  such  an  impres- 
sion, as  a  justification  of  his  course  in  waging  a  wicked  and  atro- 
cious war  upon  a  gallant  and  noble  people,  whom  he  is  perfectly 
aware  he  can  only  wound — never  conquer,  but  he  will  find  few 
charitable  enough  to  believe  him  actuated  either  by  truth  or  honor. 

The  further  statements  of  the  papers  of  the  United  States,  which 
have  been  extensively  reproduced  in  the  British  press,  that  large 
numbers — multitudes,  indeed,  of  the  people  of  North  Carolina  had, 
after  the  fall  of  Fort  Hatteras,  gone  in  and  taken  the  oath  of  alle- 
giance to  the  Government  of  the  United  States,  are  likewise  devoid 
or  truth.  On  the  isolated  and  barren  strip  of  land  where  Fort 
Hatteras  is  situated,  there  are  some  wreckers,  who  support 
themselves  principally  by  decoying  vessels  to  their  desi ruc- 
tion by  displaying  false  lights,  &c.  Some  of  these  desperadoes, 
who  live  without  the  sense  of  any  duty  they  owe  to  God  or  man, 
and  who  do  not  wish  to  be  disturbed  by  their  new  neighbors,  may 
have  gone  in  and  taken  the  oath  after  the  fort  fell,  but  even  this 
is  doubttul.  If  the  Yankees  were  dislodged  to-morrow,  they  would 
take  a  second  oath,  with  equal  alacrity,  to  whoever  might  next 
occupy   the  waste.     If  any  meeting  favorable  to  Mr.  Lincoln  ever 

(19) 


74  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

took  place  in  North  Carolina,  which  I  do  not  believe,  it  could  only 
have  have  been  composed  of  these  wreckers,  acting  under  the 
auspices  of  their  new  fledged  friends,  the  Yankee  invaders,  and  the 
salutary  restraints  imposed  by  martial  law  and  the  guns  of  Fort 
Hatteras. 

By  giving  this  hurried  note  a  place  in  your  columns,  where  the 
statements  it  is  intended  to  correct,  have  appeared,  you  will  much 
oblige,     Sir,  your  most  obedient  servant, 

J.  L.  Peyton. 

58  Jermyn  Street,  St.  James. 
London,  Nov.  23rd,  1861. 

P.  S. — The  statements  in  the  alleged  proceedings  of  the  meeting 
in  Hyde  county,  that  the  writ  of  habeas  corpus,  the  freedom  of 
speech  and  of  the  press,  and  the  right  of  trial  by  jury,  had  all  been 
suspended  in  North  Carolina,  are  equally  without  foundation. 

J.  L.  p. 

This  note  had  no  sooner  appeared  in  the  Times,  than  large  num- 
bers of  persons  began  to  call,  either  to' make  more  particular  en- 
quiries as  to  the  condition  of  affairs  in  America,  to  express  sym- 
pathy for  the  Southern  cause,  or  simply  to  pay  their  respects  and 
invite  us  to  dinner.  From  this  time  our  circle  of  acquaintance 
rapidly  extended,  and  we  received  much  civilitv  and  kindness 
from  persons  in  all  ranks  and  classes,  and  these  amenities  contin- 
ued up  to  the  period  when  we  left  on  our  return,  years  afterwards, 
to  the  United  States. 

Elected  an  honorary  member  of  the  Reform  Club,  we  there  met 
many  of  the  celebrities  of  the  day — statesmen,  authors,  lawyers, 
army  and  navy  officers,  etc.  In  the  library  of  the  Club  much  of  our 
correspondence,  for  a  time,  was  conducted  and  in  the  whist  room 
we  were  initiated  into  the  mysteries  of  short  whist,  which  has 
superceded  the  game  played  in  the  days  of  Hoyle. 

The  most  agreeable  impressions  were  produced  by  our  new 
made  friends,  by  the  ease  and  elegance  of  manners  generally  of 
those  in  good  society,  and  the  entire  absence  of  any  pomposity  or 
assumption  of  dignity.  F'oreigners  entertain  many  erroneous 
opinions  as  to  the  English.  So  far  from  being  a  surly,  ill-temper- 
ed, rude,  vulj[iar  and  unfeeling  people,  they  are  the  reverse,  and 
should  be  valued,  and  are,  by  those  who  know  them  well,  upon 
their  high  breeding  and  upon,  as  a  people,  being  de  bon  coeur, 
which  in  its  real  meaning  answers  with  much  exactness  to  the 
English  adjective  good-natured.  Mr.  Gladstone  usually  sat  in  the 
Club,  when  his  onerous  duties  admitted  of  his  being  there,  talking 
to  a  listening  audience  who  gathered  round  about  his  chair,  in  an 
earnest  and  perfectly  natural  common  sense  way  as   if  he   meant 


RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES.  75 

what  he  said,  and  said  what  he  meant.  This  remarkable  man 
wields  a  vast  influence — manipulates  those  about  him  like  a  musi- 
cian the  keys  of  his  piano.  However  some  of  his  followers  may 
now  and  again  oppose  his  measures,  they  do  not  long  remain  in 
in  opposition— they  are  soon  reclaimed  by  his  eloquence.  Few 
can  resist  the  charm,  the  magnetism  of  his  manners,  the  force  of 
his  logic,  the  persuasiveness  of  his  discourse.  He  is  never  at  a  loss 
or  unprepared,  but  ever  ready.  He  knows  what  he  is  going  to 
say  and  how  to  say  it ;  is  full  of  arguments,  images,  tropes  and 
figures,  and  blends  them  with  his  facts,  with  matchless  skill.  He 
is  never  cold,  dull  or  monotonous,  but  always  the  enthusiast  as 
talker,  writer,  orator  and  statesman,  uniting  the  originality  of  the 
man  of  genius  to  the  erudition  of  the  scholar  and  the  graceful 
manners  of  the  gentleman  and  man  of  the  world.  He  unites  the 
sallies,  the  incidents,  the  surprises,  the  picturesque  of  language, 
with  reflexion,  sequence  and  thought,  and  draws  his  resources  and 
his  power  alike  from  the  premeditated  and  the  unseen,  from  the 
vigorous  precision  of  art  and  the  simple  graces  of  nature.  We 
venerate  the  man  ;  his  heart  is  warm,  his  hands  are  pure. 

John  Bright  walks  about  the  rooms  with  his  hands  in  his  breeches 
pockets,  chatting  familiarly  with  his  friends,  and  entirely  free  from 
any  affectation,  self-assertion  or  starch.  These  great  men  are  civil, 
polite,  attentive  to  stranger  acquantainces,  acting  as  if  they  felt  an 
interest  in  them  and  their  comiort — never  on  any  occasion  do  they 
indulge  in  vulgar  boorishness  or  neglect  of  others.  Though  a 
little  reserved  on  first  acquaintance,  they  soon  establish  relations 
of  personal  friendship  with  those  to  whom  they  are  introduced  and 
with  whom  they  are  thrown  in  the  same  social  position,  or  who 
are  of  similar  tastes  and  pursuits.  They  do  not  display  what  are 
called  company  manners,  as  do  so  many  coarse  and  underbred 
people.  The  manners  of  high  bred  English  people  are  always  the 
same  at  home  and  in  society.  They  never  swagger,  lounge,  or 
carry  into  even  the  family  circle  the  actions  proper  to  the  dressing 
room. 

Among  our  most  intimate  friends  in  this  club,  and  our  relations 
subsist  to  this  day  with  many  who  survive,  were.  Dr.  Charles 
Mackay,  the  popular  poet  and  for  many  years  the  American  cor- 
respondent of  the  Times,  Mr.  de  la  Prime,  a  nephew  of  the  great 
Thackaray,  Osmond  de  Beauvoir  Priaulx,  a  distinguished  author 
and  graduate  of  Cambridge,  Sir  William  Hutt,  M.  P.,  T.  Colley 
Grattan,  author  of  "Civilized  America,"  A.  J.  Beresford  Hope,  M. 
P*.,  and  many  others. 

We  were  also  honored  by  an  election  as  Fellow  of  the  Royal 
Geographical  Society,  and  spent  many  hours  in  their  rooms,  talk- 
ing to  the  accomplished  secretary,  Dr.  Shaw,  to  Captain  Bedford 


76  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

Pirn,  R.  N.,  Dr.  Rae,  Sir  Edward  Belcher,  R.  N.,  and  other 
celebrities.  Many  evenings  were  passed  this  winter  and  afterwards 
in  Burlington  House,  Piccadilly,  listening  to  the  interesting  and  in- 
structive lectures  of  travelled  Fellows  of  the  Royal  Geographical, 
such  as  Sir  Rutherford  Alcock,  who  gave  his  impressions  of  Ja- 
pan; Dr.  Rae,  who  told  us  of  out  of  the  way  places  in  Canada, 
and  C.  R.  Markhaui,  who  gave  an  account  of  his  travels  in   Peru. 

In  connection  with  the  Society  there  is  a  social  club  called  the 
Cosmos,  where  we  partook  of  many  fine  dinners.  The  English 
love  good  eating  and  are  a  little  too  fond  of  talking  about  it.  At 
the  Cosmos  we  were  much  interested  in  the  conversation  of  such 
famous  guests  or  members — we  do  not  know  which  they  were — 
as  Girard,  the  French  lion  hunter,  and  Paul  du  Chaillu,  the  African 
explorer  and  the  first  person  to  introduce  Europeans  and  Ameri- 
cans to  a  knowledge  of  the  gorilla.*  With  the  editors  of  nearly 
all  the  daily  papers,  Messrs.  Delane,  Mowbray  Morris,  and  Samp- 
son, of  the  Times,  Thornton  Hunt,  of  the  Teleirraph,  Mr. 
Johnson,  of  the  Standard,  etc.,  we  were  on  familiar  terms  of  inter- 
course. We  understood  the  power  of  the  press  and  sought  its 
aid  on  our  behalf — that  irresistible  power  which  is  more  mighty 
than  armies,  religions,  legislatures  or  kings  ;  more  rapid  than  the 
winds,  more  boundless  than  space,  as  intelligent  as  thought. 

While  our  time  was  much  engrossed  with  affairs  of  serious  im- 
port we  did  not  altogether  neglect  society.  On  the  contrary,  we 
entered  into  its  blandishments  with  keen  zest.  Who  does  not  feel 
the  need  of  society?  Man  is  a  social  creature,  and  though  some 
have  divested  themselves  of  social  affection  to  a  great  extent,  or 
confined  it  to  very  narrow  limits,  the  social  principle  can  never  be 
eradicated.  What  man  could  be  content  with  all  the  wealth  and 
power  the  world  affords,  if  no  one  could  taste  of  his  happiness  but 
himself?  What  pleasure  could  wealth  bestow,  unless  it  was  im- 
parted and  mutually  enjoyed  ?  What  is  desirable  in  power,  but  the 
exercise  of  it  in  good  deeds  ?  Who  is  savage  enough  to  choose  a 
solitary  felicity  ? 

♦In  October,  1855,  du  Chaillu  sailed  from  New  York  iot  Africa,  intending  to 
explore  the  then  unknown  region  lying  2°  on  each  side  of  the  equator.  He 
spent  nearly  four  years  in  this  region,  penetrating  to  about  longitude  15°  east. 
During  this  time  he  shot  and  stuffed  2,000  birds,  of  which  60  species  were  pre- 
viously unknown  to  naturalists  and  killed  fully  1,000  animals,  including  many 
gorillas  and  20  other  species  of  animals  previously  unclassified.  He  published 
in  London,  in  1861,  the  history  of  this  expedition,  under  the  title  of  ••Explora- 
tions and  Adventures  in  Equatorial  Africa."  He  sailed  from  England  in  1863 
and  reached  the  mouth  of  the  Ogobai  river,  Africa,  in  October.  On  his  return 
to  Europe  he  published  an  account  of  his  experiences  under  the  title  :  "A  jour- 
ney to  Ashargo  Land." 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  77 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

THE  SHAW  FARM  OF  PRINCE    ALBERT — ENGLISH    AGRICULTURE — 

STOJK    BREEDING,  ETC. — POLITICAL    INFLUENCE    OF 

THE  LANDLORDS — DUKE  OF  SOMERSET. 


The  sudden  deadi  of  Prince  Albert,  shordy  after  our  arrival  in 
England,  investing  everything  with  which  he  was  particularly 
connected  with  more  than  ordinary  interest,  we  availed  ourselves 
of  being  at  Windsor,  to  visit  the  Royal  farms — more  particularly 
the  Shaw  farm,  of  which  the  Prince  was  tenant  from  1840  until  his 
death  in  1861. 

This  farm  consists  of  800  acres,  and  is  cultivated  extensively  for 
the  supply  of  the  castle.  Since  1849,  it  has  been  conducted  under 
minute  instructions  from  Prince  Albert,  who  sought  to  make  it  a 
model  farm,  and  who  here  made  many  scientific  experiments.  It 
was  here  that  he  undertook  and  carried  through  successfully  his 
plan  for  perfecting,  by  judicious  crosses,  the  short-horn  breed  of 
of  cattle.  The  Prince,  in  this  line,  was  a  worthy  disciple  of  the 
celebrated  Jones  Webb,  who  acquired  world  wide  fame  for  his  im- 
provement of  stock  at  his  estate  of  Babraham. 

Of  the  Shaw  farm  only  one  hundred  and  twenty  acres  is  arable 
land,  the  rest  lying  out  in  grass  for  permanent  pasture  or  being 
woodland.  Thirty  laborers  and  six  pair  of  horses  are  ordinarily 
employed,  but  during  hay  making  and  harvest  an  additional  force 
is  engaged.  The  great  particularity  with  which  the  land  is  culti- 
vated and  every  farming  operation  conducted  may  be  inferred 
from  the  employment  of  this  large  force.  And  they  were  con- 
stantly at  labor.  The  Prince,  an  energetic  working  man  himself, 
allowed  no  idlers  on  the  estate. 

The  farm  horse  in  use  is  of  the  Clydesdale  breed,  a  cross  of  the 
thorough-bred  with  the  Flanders  mare.  The  ordinary  size  of  this 
animal  is  i6i  hands  high,  with  a  weight,  when  in  good  condition, 
of  two  thousand  pounds.  They  have  clean,  straight  limbs,  a  light 
step  and  powerful  muscular  development,  are  hardy,  good  tem- 
pered, intelligent,  and,  notwithstanding  their  size,  quick  and  ac- 
tive. Many  of  Prince  Albert's  have  taken  prizes  at  the  agricul- 
tural fairs,  and  in  passing  through  the  stables,  we  observed  that 
the  premium  cards  were  attached  to  the  stalls  of  the  successful 
horses.  They  were  pointed  out  with  much  pride  by  our  guide, 
Mr.  Tate,  the  overseer  of  the  farm. 


78  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

The  Prince  was  likewise  successful  in  raising  coach  horses,  a 
type  of  which  is  produced  by  crossing  the  Cleveland  bay  mare 
with  the  thoroughbred  horse.  The  points  of  the  coach  horse  are 
a  deep  and  well  proportioned  body,  short  and  clean  bone  under 
the  knee,  open  feet,  sound  and  tough.  He  possesses  a  fine  knee 
action,  lifts  his  feet  high,  which  gives  elegance  to  his  paces  and 
action.  He  carries  his  head  well  and  has  a  fine  elevated  crest. 
The  breeding  and  rearing  of  horses  are  carried  on  professionally 
in  England,  chiefly  in  Yorkshire,  but  many  private  gentlemen  and 
farmers  address  themselves  to  it  as  a  means  of  pecuniary  profit, 
and  the  improvement  of  their  stock.  None  have  been  more  suc- 
cessful than  Prince  Albert. 

While  traversing  the  farm-yard,  we  were  attracted  by  some 
good  specimens  of  the  white  Windsor  pig,  a  type  of  the  swine 
family  obtained  by  the  Prince  after  a  series  of  judicious  crosses, 
and  which  is  supposed  to  combine  more  good  points  than  any 
other.  We  saw  them  in  immediate  contrast  with  a  number  of 
those  celebrated  black  Berkshire  pigs  bred  on  the  farm  with  a 
view  to  ascertaining,  by  actual  experiment,  which  was  the  more 
valuable.  Without  entering  into  an  examination  of  the  question, 
or  the  points  determined  by  the  Prince's  experiments,  we  gave  an 
instant  preference  to  the  compactly  built  black  Berkshire  pig,  with 
his  short  snout,  thick  jowls  and  erect  ears. 

Prince  Albert  paid  particular  attention  to  the  breeding  of  every 
kind  of  live  stock,  made  many  experiments  and  demonstrated  by 
his  success  in  this,  as  in  every  other  department  of  agriculture,  the 
value  of  science  to  the  farmer.  He  made  it  a  point  before  com- 
mencing operations  to  analyze  the  soil  he  purposed  cultivating, 
and  with  a  knowledge  of  its  composition,  qualities  and  deficien- 
cies, what  crops  it  best  suited  and  how  its  absent  properties  could 
be  most  economically  supplied,  he  went  to  work  with  a  reasonable 
assurance  of  success. 

The  Shaw  farm  is  cultivated  on  what  is  called  the  four  course 
or  five  field  system,  and  two  grain  crops  are  taken  in  succession. 
The  use  of  these  terms  indicate  to  what  an  exact  and  rigid  science 
agriculture  is  reduced  in  England.  The  system  or  course  of  cul- 
tivation is  designated  in  the  lease  and  no  covenants  are  more 
strictly  Enforced.  The  well  to  do  man  may  find  no  peculiar  diffi- 
culty in  executing  them,  for  he  has  plenty  of  cheap  labor  and  all  the 
requisite  implements  and  machinery.  But  the  number  of  these  is 
small  if  the  accounts,  had  in  1879,  from  England  are  reliable — ac 
counts  which  represent  the  tenant  farmers  as  throwing  up  their 
leases  by  the  score  in  order  to  emigrate  to  America.  The  four 
course  system  means  simply  that  the  whole  arable  extent  of  the 
estate,  whatever  this  may  be,   is   equally   divided   between  four 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  79 

great  crops  :  thus,  say  the  estate  consists  of  2,000  arable  acres, 
then  it  would  be  most  probably  laid  down  thus  :  in  wheat  500 
acres,  barley  and  oats  500  acres,  seed  and  palse  500,  and  roots  500. 

The  landlord  insists  upon  a  rotation  of  crops  and  the  import- 
ance of  such  system  cannot  be  overestimated.  It  is  well  known 
that  certain  mineral  salts  or  salifiable  bases  are  essential  to  the  con- 
stitution of  vegetables.  Indeed,  it  is  asserted  by  chemists  that  no 
seed  exists  that  is  without  a  phosphate ;  and  it  is  well  known  that 
the  alkaline  salts  powerfully  promote  vegetation.  Such  is  their 
ascertained  influence,  that  tobacco,  barley  and  buckwheat  sown  in 
soils  absolutely  without  organic  matter,  but  containing  suline  sub- 
stances and  only  moistened  with  distilled  water,  are  known  to  have 
produced  perfect  plants,  which  flowered  and  fruited,  and  yielded 
ripe  seeds.  Whence  it  follows,  that  the  presence  of  saline  matter 
favors  remarkably  the  assimilation  of  the  azote  of  the  atmosphere 
during  the  act  of  vegetation. 

The  importance  of  considering  rotations  in  connection  with  the 
inorganic  substances  that  are  assimilated  by  plants,  was  perfectly 
well  known  to  Sir  Humphrey  Davy.  "The  exportation  of  grain 
from  a  country  which  receives  nothing  in  exchange  that  can  be 
turned  into  manure,  must  exhaust  the  soil  in  the  long  run,"  says 
the  illustrious  chemist,  who  ascribed  to  this  cause  the  present  ster- 
ility of  various  parts  of  Northern  Africa  and  of  Asia  Minor,  as 
well  as  of  Sicily,  which,  for  a  long  succession  of  years  was  the 
granary  of  Italy.  Rome,  unquestionably  contains  in  its  catacombs 
quantities  of  phosphorus  from  all  the  countries  of  the  earth.  Such 
startling  facts  teach  us  that,  the  extraordinary  production  of  the 
cereals  which  is  now  going  on  in  America  is  not  an  unmixed  bless- 
ing. The  spirit  of  luxury  and  extravagance  which  is  growing  in 
our  country  and  which  causes  our  farmers  to  over  cultivate  is  im- 
poverishing our  soil ;  and  unless  counterbalanced  by  an  impn^ving 
system  of  agriculture,  the  importation  of  manures  and  a  judicious 
rotation  of  crops  will  leave  us  in  the  course  of  time  in  the  same 
condition  as  the  people  of  Northern  Africa — the  possessors  of  a 
kind  of  desert  which  was  once  a  garden.  Recent  intelligence  of  a 
grain  blockade  at  Chicago,  Illinois,  tells  the  story  of  our  excessive 
production. 

"A  grain  blockade  of  prodigious  proportions,  is  the  feature  of  the 
grain  trade  in  this  market"  says  the  despatch.  "The  elevators  of 
the  city,  which  contain  an  aggregate  of  sixteen  millions  of  bushels, 
are  very  nearly  filled  to  their  utmost  capacity,  *nd  several  roads 
are  refusing  to  receive  grain  for  this  market,  because,  when  it  ar- 
rives there  are  no  acconmiodations  for  it.  In  this  condition  of  af- 
fairs the  Directors  of  the  Board  of  Trade  are  considering  the  pro- 
priety of  accepting  as  regular  the   receipts   in   the   elevators   and 


So  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

Storehouses  along  the  line  of  the  various  railroads.  It  is  also  in 
contemplation  to  provide  temporary  storage  outside  of  the  eleva- 
tors, and  to  build  new  elevators  in  various  quarters  of  the  city. 
Large  numbers  of  cars  are  lying  along  the  track  in  the  city 
.loaded  with  grain  and  are  unable  to  deposit  it.  There  are  in 
storage  8,000,000  bushels  of  wheat,  4,000,000  of  corn  and  enough 
other  grain  to  make  the  total  14,250,000  bushels,  against  10,000,- 
000  at  this  time  last  year.  There  are  also  about  a  million  bushels 
afloat  in  the  harbor." 

Windsor  park  furnishes  large  quantities  of  fern,  which  are  used 
as  litter  in  the  stables  and  cow  yards,  and  with  the  hay  and  straw 
distributed  as  fodder  to  the  stock,  produces  an  abundant  supply 
of  manure.  On  the  Shaw  farm,  as  generally,  in  England,  no  rule 
IS  more  insisted  upon  than  that  all  the  straw  produced  upon  the 
farm  shall  be  consumed  upon  it.  The  land  is  thus  kept  in  high 
condition.  We  were  glad  to  observe  that  the  wasteful  practice  of 
applying  fermenting  and  half  rotted  mature  to  the  ground  as  a  top 
dressing  for  grain,  so  extensively  practiced  in  every  county  in 
England,  which  we  have  visited,  does  not  exist  on  the  Shaw  farm. 

In  portions  of  France  and  Switzerland,  the  practice  of  top  dress- 
ing lands  sown  with  winter  grain,  is  extensively  practiced.  The 
manure  is  applied  when  the  blade  is  already  above  the  ground,  and 
the  passage  of  horses  and  wagons  over  the  fields  does  not  mate- 
rially injure  the  crop.  Yet  farmers  generally  avail  themselves  of  a 
time  when  the  ground  is  frozen  to  perform  the  process.  The 
good  effects  of  top  dressing  with  unrotted  straw,  litter,  &c.,  have 
been  too  frequently  witnessed  to  make  us  doubt  its  value  to  the 
growing  crop,  but  we  are  decidedly  of  opinion  that  a  well  rotted 
dung  heap,  charged  with  volatile  gasses,  ought  to  be  immediately 
plowed  under  to  prevent  the  action  of  light  and  air  upon  the  mass, 
but  straw,  woody  stems,  leaves  and  weeds — what  is  called  the  litter 
of  barn  yard  and  the  farm — which  make  good  beds  for  the  stock, 
ought  to  be  applied  before  it  has  fermented,  as  a  top  dressing  for 
winter  crops  and  on  grass  lands.  Often,  when  walking  over  the 
parks  and  fields,  we  have  felt  crumbling  under  our  feet  the  dry 
fibre  of  what  was  once  a  mass  charged  with  fertilizing  properties, 
but  which  exposure  to  the  light  and  air  had  dried  up  and  dissipa- 
ted. The  most  valuable  qualities  of  a  manure  heap  being  gase- 
ous, it  is  surprising  that  in  England,where  there  is  such  a  diffusion 
of  knowledge,  and  so  much  intelligent  investigation,  such  an  igno- 
rant system  shoujd  continue.  By  immediately  turning  the  manure 
under  with  the  plow,  all  this  waste  matter  would  be  saved.  The 
fertilizing  properties  of  the  manure,  acted  on  chemically  by  the 
substances  composing  the  soil,  would  enter  into  and  become  a  part 
of  the  soil  itself,  and  the  beneficial  effects  be  felt  for  years.     A  top 


RAMBLING    REMINISCENSES.  8l 

dressing:  of  leaves  or  unrotted  straw  protecting  or  shading-  the 
surface,  and  causing  decomposition,  is  no  doubt  of  considerable 
value  to  impoverished  soil  and  grass  land,  and  is  probpbly  the 
best  mode  of  applying  unrotted  straw,  but  how  different  is  this 
from  exposing  to  the  action  of  the  sun  and  air  a  mass  charged  with 
highly  volatile  gases?  On  a  large  majority  of  the  English  farms, 
during  this  and  a  previous  visit  to  the  country,  we  have  seen  the 
manure,  instead  of  being  collected  in  pits  or  vats,  with  the  liquid 
refuse,  scattered  over  the  barn  yards  and  perpetually  exposed  to 
the  action  of  the  sun  and  air.  The  advantage  of  such  pits  are 
acknowledged,  but  the  tenants  are  unwilling  to  incur  Utie  expense 
of  having  them  prepared.  They  are  generally  tenants  for  a  single 
year  and  hold  their  property  under  rigid  covenants.  This  system 
of  letting  from  year  to  year  has  been  adopted  as  a  means,  so  we 
have  been  informed,  of  making  the  tenants  subservient  in  political 
matters  to  their  landlords.  It  is  perfectly  understood  they  retain 
their  premises  upon  the  condition  that  they  vote  as  their  landlord 
may  dictate,  thus  surrendering  up  their  elective  franchises  and  be- 
coming the  pliant  instruments  of  his  will.  This  is  what  is  called 
the  conservative  influence  of  the  landed  gentry.  We  have  just 
laid  down  a  copy  of  the  "Morning  Herald,"  of  1870,  containing 
the  following  paragraph,  which  bears  the  conclusive  evidence  of 
the  wrong  and  injustice  practiced  under  this  system  : 

"The  Duke  of  Somerset  and  his  Tenants. — The  following 
letter  has  been  addressed  to  the  editor  of  the  "Western  Morning 
News."  The  indignation  of  the  inhabitants  of  Totness  has  been 
aroused  by  the  serving  of  notices  to  quit  on  most  of  the  tenants 
of  the  Duke  of  Somerset,  who  voted  against  his  Grace's  nominee, 
or  abstained  from  voting  at  the  recent  election.  This  dirty  work 
was  commenced  soon  after  the  last  election.  The  victims  then  were 
Mr.  E.  R.  Turpin  and  Mr.  Blackler,  They  have  this  quarter  left 
Bridgetown  and  come  into  the  land  of  Freedom— viz,  ihis  side  of 
the  river  Dart.  The  victims  this  quarter  include  the  occupiers  of 
both  houses  and  lands,  and  some  of  them  have  been  tenants  the 
last  twenty  years  and  were  among  the  number  who  acceded  to  the 
compact  entered  into  some  years  since  for  one  conservative  and 
one  liberal  member.  The  following  have  had  notice  to  quit :  Mr. 
John  Penwill,  Mr.  W.  Ellis,  Mr.  J.  Willis,  Mr.  W.  Byne.  Mr.  Robt. 
Lake,  Mr.  J.  Mitchell,  Mr.  W.  K.  Hanniford.  Mr.Wm.  Harris,  Mr. 
James  Briggs  and  Mr.  T.  Tucker.  Mr.  Robert  Earle  has  given 
notice  and  so  has  Mr.  Lake.  The  movement  goes  far  to  fully  con- 
firm the  belief  that  the  Duke  is  determined  to  make  every  one  of 
his  tenants  vote  as  he  bids." 

Many  similar  paragraphs  might  be  quoted  from  the  papers,  and 
many  which  show  that  the  spirit  of  Radical  reform  and  change  is 


82  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

fostered  amongf  the  people  by  such  ill-advised  conduct.  It  be- 
hooves the  landlords  if  they  wish  to  retain  their  influence  and  power, 
and  that  they  must  so  wish  none  can  doubt,  to  do  justice  to  their 
tenants  and  yield  something  of  their  ancient  rights  and  privileges 
to  the  masses,  whose  growing  intelligence  renders  them  fit  and 
safe  depositories  of  much  more  political  power  than  ihey  now  enjoy. 
The  real  statesmen  of  England  should  see,  while  it  is  yet  time, 
that  it  is  only  by  liberal  concessions  they  can  satisfy  the  just  de- 
mands of  the  people  and  silence  clamor. 

By  acts  of  tyranny  and  oppression  the  rulers  of  the  old  world 
have  almost  precipitated  revolution  over  half  of  Kurope  within  the 
last  twenty  years.  And  unless  wiser  councils  prevail,  the  period 
is  not  distant  when  we  shall  see  the  champions  of  the  divine  ri^ht 
of  Kings  meeting  foemen  worthy  of  their  steel  in  the  champions 
of  freedom.  Recent  attempts  have  been  made  upon  the  lives  of 
the  Kings  of  Italy  and  Spam  and  upon  that  of  the  Emperor  of 
Germany.  The  Emperor  of  Russia  lives  in  a  chronic  state  of  alarm 
which  has  been  recei.tly  amusingly  illustrated  by  the  following 
supposed  diary  of  his  Imperial  Majesty. 

The  Czar's  Diary. — [From  the  "Court  Journal.]  "Got  up  at 
7  a.  m.  and  ordered  my  bath.  Found  four  gallons  of  vitriol  in  it  and 
did  not  take  it.  Went  to  breakfist.  The  Nihilist  had  placed  two 
torpedoes  on  the  stairs,  but  I  did  not  step  on  them.  The  coffee 
smelt  so  strong  of  prussic  acid  that  I  was  afraid  to  drink  it.  Found 
a  scorpion  in  my  left  slipper,  but  luckily  shook  it  out  before  put- 
ting it  on.  Just  before  stepping  into  my  carriage  to  go  for  my 
morning  drive  it  was  blown  into  the  air,  killing  the  coachman  and 
the  horses  instantly.  I  did  not  drive.  Took  a  light  lunch  of  her- 
metically sealed  American  canned  goods.  They  can't  fool  me 
there.  Found  a  poisoned  dagger  in  my  favorite  chair,  with  the 
point  sticking  out.  Did  not  sit  down  on  it.  Had  dinner  -^i  6  p. 
m.,  and  m^e  Baron  Laischounowonski  taste  every  dish.  He  died 
before  the  soup  was  cleared  away.  Consumed  some  Baltimore 
oysters  and  some  London  stout  that  I  have  had  locked  up  for  five 
years.  Went  to  the  theatre  and  was  shot  at  three  times  in  the  first 
act.  Had  the  entire  audience  hanged.  Went  home  to  bed  and 
slept  all  night  on  the  roof  of  the  palace." 

The  visitor  to  the  rural  districts  cannot  fail  to  be  struck  with  the 
insufficient  and  insignificant  character  of  thefuni  buildings  gener- 
ally and  the  condition  of  dilapidation  in  which  many  of  them  are 
permitted  to  remain.  This  is  one  of  the  evil  consequences  of  the 
present  system  of  renting  from  year  to  year,  and  can  only  be  ob- 
viated by  long  leai^es,  which  involve  anabandonuient  of  the  land- 
lords right  to  control  the  political  course  of  his  tenant ;  and  a  two 
or   three  year's  notice  to  quit  with   compensation   for   permanent 


RAMBLING    REMINISCE&T/jES.'  .  83 


improvements.  Unless  some  such  polic}'  ^^  this  is  adopted,  rent 
troubles  will  become  as  serious  in  England  as  they  now  are  in^Tre- 
land  ;  and  no  earthly  power  can  avert  a  revoluiion  wh  ili  will  rock 
the  British  Empire  from  centre  to  circumference. 

A  striking  contrast  to  the  general  state  of  affairs  is  presented  by 
the  Shaw  farm,  which  is  admirably  and  completely  equipped  with 
buildings,  consisting  of  a  farm  house  occupied  by  the  overseer, 
with  all  the  necessary  appurtenances ;  foremen's  and  laborers' 
houses,  barns,  granaries,  stables  &c.,  the  whole  arranged  with 
much  skill.  The  buildings  are  supplied  with  corn  crushers,  straw 
and  turnip  cutters  and  other  machinery  worked  by  steam  power. 
The  granaries  are  in  the  third  story  of  one  of  the  buildings  above 
the  threshing  floor,  and  as  the  wheat  is  threshed  and  cleaned,  it  is 
delivered  by  travelling  cups  to  the  granary  bins,  whence  it  is  sack- 
ed and  delivered  into  carts  outside  by  an  overhanging  crane  and 
pulleys  from  the  end  of  the  apartment.  The  same  steam  power  is 
used  to  grind  food  for  the  cattle,  and  the  steam  boiler  is  utilized  in 
the  preparation  of  every  substance  used  as  food  by  the  stock.  The 
cut  hay  or  straw  is  mixed  with  turnips,  mangle  wurtzel,  &c.,  which 
have  been  crushed  by  the  proper  machinery.  This  mixture  is 
passed  into  a  large  steaming  chest  and  being  there  subjected  to 
the  action  of  hot  air,  becomes  more  palatable  and  soluble,  and 
readily  gives  up  all  its  nutritive  properties. 

The  Prince's  plan  for  fattening  sheep  deserves  to  be  mentioned. 
It  is  a  shed  with  a  sparred  floor.  Here  they  are  tied  up  by  the 
neck  and  fed  from  troughs,  upon  mixed  diet,  having  salt  and 
water  at  pleasure.  At  the  end  of  every  fortnight  they  are 
weighed  to  ascertain  what  progress  they  are  making,  and  the 
house  and  pen  carefully  washed  with  chloncte  of  lime.  Under 
this  system  as  may  be  imagined,  they  fatten  rapidly. 

The  yield  per  acre  of  wheat  on  the  Shaw  farm  is  from  thirty- 
five  to  forty  bushels,  and  from  forty  to  sixty  tons  of  mangle 
wurtzel,  and  of  grass  at  the  first  cutting  35  tons,  at  the  second  28, 
at  the  third  21  and  at  the  fourth  8,  or  a  total  of  92  tons  per  acre. 
And  yet  not  an  acre  of  the  Shaw  farm  w^as  originally  superior,  if 
indeed  equal  to  the  poorer  lands  in  the  Vi^lley  of  Virginia.  It 
has  been  made  thus  productive  by  intelligent  cultivation,  by 
labor,  and  by  the  steady  application  of  manures. 

The  laborers  work  during  the  summer  ten  hours  a  day,  from  six 
to  eleven,  then  eating,  and  again  returning  to  work  from  one  till 
five  o'clock.  The  horses  receive  two  bushels  of  grain  and  one  of 
beans  each  per  week,  with  hay  ad  libitiivi. 

Liberal  wages  are  paid  the  laborers.  In  this  county  the  ordi- 
nary wages  are  from  ten  to  eleven  shillings  per  week.  Out  of 
this   the   laborer  usually  pays  one   shilling    rent   a  week  for  his 


84  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

cottage  to  which  a  small   garden  is   in   most   instances   attached. 

The  Royal  Dairy  for  supplying  the  Castle  with  milk,  cream, 
butter  and  cheese  is  situated  on  this  farm.  The  interior  bears  an 
inscription  mentioning  the  date  of  its  erection,  &c.  It  presents  a 
handsome  aj>pearance,  the  floor  being  covered  with  fine  Minton 
tiles,  of  a  rich  and  recherche  pattern,  and  the  walls  adorned  with 
the  same  kind  of  tiles  in  various  hues.  The  ground  color  of  the 
ceiling  is  green,  upon  which  are  many  elaborate  decorations  in 
various  tints.  The  windows  are  of  stained  glass  of  the  richest 
description.  In  niches  around  the  wall  are  statues  of  the  Queen, 
Prince  Albert  and  the  royal  children.  We  could  not  help  think- 
ing they  ought  to  have  been  occupied  by  statues  of  the  best  cows. 
An  ingenious  contrivance  called  the  "ventilator,"  keeps  the  butter 
and  milk  cool  in  hot  weather.  It  bears  on  either  side  the  mono- 
gram of  the  Queen  and  Prince  Albert,  and  is  said  to  be  one  of 
the  Prince's  inventions.  The  interior  is  adorned  with  marble 
tables,  upon  which  stand  the  pans  containing  the  milk.  Under 
these  tables  a  constant  supply  of  water  is  kept,  which  may  be 
drained  off"  at  leisure  by  means  of  plugs.  Three  fountains  con- 
stantly play,  the  most  beautiful  being  one  representing  Gibson's 
"Tinted  Venus."  Among  the  articles  kept  in  the  dairy  are  some 
rare  old  china,  presented  to  the  Queen  by  members  of  the  Co- 
burg  family.  The  patent  churn  produces  in  a  half  hour  thirty 
pounds  of  butter.  Clinedinst's  water  churn  would  do  it  in  less 
time.  The  neatness,  order  and  industry  of  the  dairyman  and  his 
wife  are  perceptible  in  all  departments  of  this  eslabfishment.  By 
one  of  the  regulations,  the  resident  farm  laborers  are  allowed  a 
daily  supply  of  milk  according  to  the  size  of  their  families.  Much 
taste  and  judgment *are  displayed  in  the  model  dairy,  which  is  but 
another  monument  to  the  practical  good  sense  of  Prince  Albert. 

Among  the  peculiar  institutions  of  the  Shaw  farm  is  a  school 
and  reading  room  established  by  the  Prince  for  the  use  of  the 
farm  laborers.  A  register  of  those  who  attended  the  evening 
classes  and  their  progress  in  studies  was  regularly  inspected  by 
him,  and  he  never  failed  to  reward  the  constant  attendant  and 
successful  student.  In  connection  with  the  school,  he  provided  a 
small,  well  selected  library  for  the  use  of  all  employed  on  the  es- 
tate. 

He  always  insisted  that  a  mechanic  or  laborer  might  prosecute 
bodily  and  mental  work  at  the  same  time,  and  by  doing  so,  he 
secured  to  himself  a  constant  source  of  delightful  companionship. 
By  reason  of  his  books  and  the  information  he  acquired  from 
them,  he  provided  himself  with  cheerful  fellowship  at  all  times. 
Without  relaxing  his  labors,  he  might,  said  the  Prince,  by  and 
through  his  books,  be  in  all  times  and  at  all  places.      How  differ- 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  85 

ent  it  is  with  his  fellow  workman  who  has  no  such  resource — who 
has  no  such  companionship  within  himself!  If  his  mind  is  not  ^n 
utter  blank,  it  is  filled  with  a  world  of  trifling  and  debasing 
thoughts.  A  man,  however,  accustomed  to  think,  to  read,  and  to 
hold  intercourse  with  a  pure  and  lofty  morality,  has  tastes  above 
those  of  his  illiterate  companion,  and  might  hold  in  whatever 
sphere  of  life  a  higher  social  position.  In  addition  to  the  library 
which  he  provided,  he  encouraged  and  aided  the  workmen  19 
purchase  a  few  books  for  themselves,  thinking  that  a  well  selected 
collection  of  these  in  a  house  was  a  pledge  of  domestic  comfort,  of 
happy  fireside  influences,  and  the  best  security  for  their  continur 
ance.  These  good  books  the  Prince  regarded  as  household  deities, 
shedding  light  and  intelligence,  begetting  feelings  of  friendly  in- 
terest within  each,  to  man,  and  every  living  thing,  elevating  his 
ideas  of  the  works  of  God,  expanding  his  views  of  this  and  the 
world  to  come,  staying  the  downward  tendencies  of  their  natures, 
purifying,  ennobling  and  enlarging  their  affections,  and  thus  be- 
coming the  shields  of  the  household  virtues.  These,  he  said,  were 
the  real,  true  household  deities,  and  not  the  false  gods  set  up  by 
the  Romans  in  their  ignorance  and  superstition.  In  a  word,  good 
books  were,  in  his  opinion,  the  best  protection  of  every  social 
virtue,  and  the  best  security  to  domestic  comfort  and  peace.  Few 
people  there  are  who  will  not  subscribe  to  the  justness  of  his  views 
on  this  subject. 

A  monthly  report  of  the  Operations  of  the  farm  was  made  to 
Prince  Albert,  who  inspected  them  closely  and  issued  instructions 
accordingly.  This  excellent  man  ever  sought,  in  his  farming  op- 
erations, as  in  all  the  duties  of  life,  to  discover  what  was  true  and 
to  practice  that  which  is  good. 

During  the  period  of  our  visit  to  Berkshire,  the  farmers  were 
engaged  in  plowing  their  land  for  the  spring  crop,  and  the  process, 
though  new  to  us,  was  decidedly  antiquated.  They  had  five  to 
six  horses  harnessed,  one  behind  another,  to  the  plows,  and  while 
one  man  held  the  handles,  another  managed  the  team.  From  this 
almost  obsolete  method  of  turning  the  sod  is  doubtless  derived 
the  old  distich :  ( 

"He  that  by  the  plough  would  thrive. 
Himself  must  either  hold  or  drive," 

The  reason  for  using  so  many  horses  and  not  putting  them 
abreast,  was  the  stiffness  of  the  soil  and  consequent  heavy  draught; 
that  by  employing  more  horses  than  is  necessary  they  stand  thi^ 
work  better  and  longer  than  when  too  hard  pressed  ;  that  part  of 
the  team  consists  of  young  horses,  which  are  thus  exercised  and 

I 

(-22)   . 


86  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

assist  in  the  labor,  without  injury  to  themselves,  and  harnessed  in 
a  line  ahead  of  each  other,  they  do  not  injure  the  soft  surface  soil 
on  the  land  side. 

These  are  very  plausible  reasons  for  the  plan,  but  we  are  dis- 
posed to  believe  nevertheless  that  it  is  better  economy  to  employ 
only  the  horses  required  for  the  work,  than  supernumeraries  to 
prevent  possible  injury  to  them;  that  before  putting^  a  young  horse 
to  the  severe  work  of  the  plow,  he  ought  to  be  well  broken,  so 
that  he  may  perform  his  work  steadily  and  thoroughly,  making  a 
full  one  in  the  team,  and  that  five  or  six  heavy  horses,  marching 
one  after  another,  at  the  bottom  of  a  furrow  will  do  more  injury  to 
the  land  than  if  harnessed  abreast.  Accepting,  however,  without 
argument,  the  explanation  of  the  British  farmer,  the  question  is 
submitted  to  our  practical  agriculturists,  who  will,  if  they  have  not 
long  since  done  so,  soon  solve  the  problem. 


CHAPTER  IX. 


HAMPTON  COURT— MONS.  ASSOLANT — CARDINAL  VVOLSLEV, 


Milton  has  observed  that  he  who  neglects  to  visit  the  country 
in  the  spring,  and  rejects  the  pleasures  that  are  then  in  their  first 
bloom  and  fragrance,  is  guilty  of  "sullenness  against  nature."  If 
we  allow  different  duties  to  different  seasons,  he  may  be  charged 
with  equal  disobedience  to  the  voice  of  nature,  who  looks  on  the 
bleak  hills  and  leafless  woods  without  seriousness  and  awe.  Spring 
is  the  season  of  gaiety,  and  winter  of  terror  ;  in  spring  the  heart 
of  tranquility  dances  to  the  melody  of  the  groves,  and  the  eye  of 
benevolence  sparkles  at  the  sight  of  happiness  and  plenty  ;  not  so 
in  winter,  then  compassion  melts  at  the  universal  calamity,  the  tear 
starts  at  the  wailing  of  hunger  and  the  cries  of  creation  in  distress. 
But  a  truce  to  reflections  on  the  changes  of  the  seasons.  Concur- 
ring in  the  great  poet's  views — nev^r  going  to  the  country  without 
finding  something  to  revive  our  curiosity  and  engage  our  attention 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  87 

— we  accepted  an  invitation  to  visit  Hampton  Court,  in  June,  1862, 
with  a  party  consisting  ot  many  agreeable  persons,  among  them 
Dr.  A.  T.  Bledsoe,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  F.  T.  Tremlett,  Sir  Henry  de 
Hoghton,  Lady  Eardley,  and  three  French  gentlemen,  one  of 
them  being  M.  Assolant,  the  vivacious  correspondent  of  the  Cou- 
rier du  Dnnanchc,  whose  letters  from  England  during  the  Exhi- 
bition of  1862  created  so  much  amusement  in  Paris  and  so  much 
irritation  in  London. 

M.  Assolant  is  a  good  specimen  of  a  Frenchman,  gay,  witty, 
frivolous,  sarcastic,  sardonic.  His  pictures  of  the  English,  like 
all  drawn  by  his  countrymen,  are  exaggerated  until  they  become 
ludicrous,  and  while  no  one  could  read  them  without  a  laugh,  it 
appeared  simply  ridiculous  that  John  Bull  should  take  them  so 
much  to  heart  as  he  appeared  to  do.  Not  only  the  Times,  but  all 
the  other  daily  papers,  belabored  him  soundly  for  his  sketches. 
M.  Assolant  is  a  fine  flaneur,  or  "snapper  up  of  unconsidered  tri- 
fles," full  of  anecdote — one  of  those  travelling  companions  who 
shorten  the  longest  journey.  He  kept  us  in  a  continual  laugh  and 
emerged  from  the  train  at  Hampton  Court  covered  with  dust  and 
applause.  This  clever  man  was  born  in  Aubusson  Creuse,  in  1827; 
he  finished  his  collegiate  career  about  the  year  1850.  He  was 
now,  such  was  his  scholarship,  appointed  to  a  professorship  in  the 
University  of  France,  where  he  was  successfully  engaged  for  some 
years.  A  fondness  for  adventure  led  him  to  abandon  his  trust  and 
travel  in  Central  America  and  the  United  States.  On  his  return 
to  France  he  contributed  to  the  ''Revue  des  Deux  Maudes''  an 
article  upon  the  adventurer,  "Walker  and  the  Americans,"  and 
two  rather  successful  novels.  It  was  thought  that  while  in  Central 
America,  he  took  part  with  the  fillibusters.  In  1858  he  pub- 
lished what  was  called  'une  fantasie  Americaine,"  under  the  title 
of  "Scenes  de  la  vie  des  Etats  Unis,"  and  since  many  other  books, 
biographical,  historical  and  fictitious.  His  most  recent  work,  pub- 
lished about  this  period,  was  entitled  "Historic  d'un  Etudiant." 
For  some  unexplained  reason  Mons.  Assolant  could  not  get  on 
comfortably  with  the  English,  but  found  himself  entirely  at  home, 
like  most  Frenchmen,  with  Americans.  His  whimsical  ridicule  of 
John  Bull  was  exceedingly  droll  and  amusing.  He  would  stop  at 
times  and  express  in  a  comical  way  his  respect  for  America  and 
the  Americans,  an  admiration  and  respect  which  he  declared  was 
based  on  the  great  qualities  of  both  country  and  people.  When 
told  that  the  Americans  were  English,  only  born  in  another  hemi- 
sphere, he  dissented  and  declared  that  though  made  up  of  all  peo- 
ples, the  Americans  were  more  Celtic  than  Teutonic,  and  that 
Brother  Jonathan,  with  all  his  eccentricities  and  grotesqueness, 
was  decidedly  ahead  of  John  Bull.    John  Bull,  he  said,  even  be- 


88  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

fore  the  conquest,  was  made  up  of  Britons,  Romans,  Saxons,  Picts 
and  Danes,  and  had  no  right  to  call  himself  an  Anglo-Saxon.  In 
fact,  said  Assolant,  there  is  no  such  race  as  Anglo-Saxons  and 
never  was.  He  remarked  that  when  it  was  customary  to  denounce 
King  William  as  a  foreigner,  Defoe  wrote  "The  true  born  Eng- 
lishman," in  which  he  instructs  his  countrymen  as  to  the  mongrel 
races  which  had  conspired  to  form  that  "vain,  ill-natured  thing,  an 
Englishman,"  and  showed 

A  true-born  Englishman's  a  contradiction — 

In  speech  an  irony,  in  fact  a  fiction  ; 

A  metaphor  invented  to  express 

A  man  akin  to  all  the  universe. 

In  a  serio-comic  vein  he  ran  over  a  list  of  the  boasted  privileges 
of  the  English,  and  said  they  were  all  legacies  left  them  by  French- 
men. It  was  to  the  Norman  Kings  that  England  owed  trial  by 
jury,  the  amelioration  of  the  condition  of  the  vassals  by  laws  cur- 
tailing the  powers  of  the  old  barons,  the  equalization  of  taxes  by 
which  lords  and  commons  paid  alike ;  the  summoning  of  the  first 
House  of  Commons  that  forced  King  John  to  sign  Magna  Charta. 
Here  was  the  commencement  of  English  nationality,  said  he,  for 
before  this  period,  English  history  was  a  mere  history  of  elements, 
of  their  collisions  and  of  the  processes  of  their  fusion. 

At  this  point  a  young  man,  of  the  cockney  type,  not,  however, 
of  our  party,  who  had  listened  to  the  discussion  in  uneasy  silence, 
began  to  show  signs  of  fight,  and  it  required  all  of  Mr.  Tremlett's 
clerical  authority,  and  the  aplomb  of  Sir  Henry  de  Hoghton  to 
keep  the  peace.  At  the  next  station  we  were  glad  to  see  this  lard 
complexioned  youth,  with  fierce  grey  eyes,  piano  key  teeth,  elon- 
gated legs  and  gooseberry  mustache,  leave  the  carriage. 

The  French  are,  as  all  the  world  knows,  the  most  racy  and  de- 
lightful of  conversationalists,  and  M.  Assolant  shines  among  his 
own  people,  m  the  famed  salons  of  Paris.  Yet  even  he  is  not 
likely  to  rival,  in  this  direction,  his  illustrious  countrywoman, 
Madame  de  Stael,  who  is  represented  as  having  been  so  fascinat- 
ing that  those  who  listened  to  her  were  not  aware,  on  one  occasion 
of  a  thunderstorm. 

To  the  politeness,  the  manners  and  the  accomplishments  of  the 
fashionable  world,  M.  Assolant  adds  a  thorough  knowledge  of 
men  ;  is  indeed  a  man  of  the  world,  if  not  the  spoiled  child,  whose 
caprices  have  always  been  laws,  and  who  must,when  a  child,  have 
broken  the  playthings  he  was  refused.  It  is  possible,  therefore, 
that  he  was  "buttering"  us  at  the  expense  of  John  Bull,  or  he  may 
have  been  amusing  himself  with  both  at  one  and  the  same  time. 
Sir  Henry  de  Hoghton  was  too  much  occupied  with  a  flirtation 


RAMBLING     REMIxNISCENSES.  89 

with  Lady  Eardley  to  pay  attention  to  the  Frenchman,  who  cer- 
tainly diverted  the  rest  of  the  party  no  Httle.  Dr.  Bledsoe,  who 
gave  the  witty  Gaul  small  credit  for  sincerity  in  his  pronounced 
American  prejudices,  directed  many  heavy  shot  at  him,  which 
struck  with  telling  effect.  M.  Assolant  is  a  man  of  middle  height, 
handsome  features,  dark  complexion,  calm  black  eyes,  thick,  wiry 
mustaches,  hanging  like  those  of  a  Tartar.  His  voice  is  sweet  and 
musical  and  when  he  smiles  his  face  assumes  an  air  of  benevo- 
lence.. 

The  train,  which  had  been  gliding  on  with  jerks  of  white  vapor, 
now  stopped  with  bragging  puffs  of  smoke,  and  the  porters  throw- 
ing open  the  carriage  doors  cried  out :  "Hampton  Court  !" 

Hampton  Court  is  known  the  world  over  as  one  of  the  most  in- 
teresting spots  in  England,  whether  considerered  with  reference 
to  the  historical  associations  with  which  it  is  rife,  its  extensiVe  pic- 
ture galleries,  or  the  beauty  of  its  gardens  and  parks,  both  of  which 
have  been  elaborately  and  elegantly  improved. 

Therefore  of  Hampton  Court  we  shall  give  a  brief  account : 
Entering  its  gates  it  is  impossible  not  to  pass  in  review  at  once  the 
singular  history  and  deplorable  fate  of  the  wonderful  man  by  whom 
it  was  reared,  and  who  here  lived  in  an  ostentatious  style  of  more 
than  regal  state.  Without  indulging  in  the  extravagances  of  the 
stock  tourist,  who  might  here  detain  the  reader  several  hours  with 
his  "contemplations"  in  the  style  of  Volney's,  "here  once  stood  a 
populous  city,  the  seat  of  a  powerful  empire,"  we  shall  content 
ourselves  with  a  rapid  resume  of  the  principal  events  in  the  life  of 
Cardinal  Wolsey,  who  built  the  palace  when  at  the  height  of  his 
power,  and  with  the  deliberate  purpose  of  making  it  surpass  in 
size  and  magnificence  any  Royal  residence  in  Europe. 

Thomas  Wolsey  was  born  in  Ipswich,  Suffolk,  in  1471,  and 
was  the  son  of  a  butcher.  Though  not  wealthy,  his  father's  means 
were  sufficient  to  enable  him  to  bestow  upon  his  son  a  liberal  edu- 
cation, which  he  completed  at  Magdalen  college,  Oxford.  During 
his  university  career  he  exhibited  extraordinary  talents  and  in- 
dustry. , 

The  multitude  of  the  offices  and  dignities,  civil  and  ecclesiastical, 
which  he  afterwards  filled  is  so  curious,  that  at  the  risk  of  being 
tedious,  we  shall'run  hurriedly  over  the  list.  In  1504  he  was 
chaplain  to  Henry  VII.  with  dispensation  to  hold  three  livings, 
stations  he  acquired  through  the  influence  of  Sir  John  Naphant, 
Governor  of  Calais.  Young  Wolsey  had  gone  to  France  shortly 
after  leaving  Oxford  and  took  service  under  the  Governor,  and 
showed  such  remarkable  diligence  and  discretion  that  he  was 
recommended  by  Sir  John  to  his  sovereign.  His  next  appoint- 
ment w^as  royal  almoner,  and  in  1508,  Dean  of  Lincoln.     In  1510, 


ro-y^ 


90  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

he  received  a  grant  of  the  parsonage  of  St.  Bride,  and  in  the  same 
year  was  appointed  Canon  of  Windsor,  and  was  a  member  of  the 
King's  privy  council.  He  afterwards  succeeded  to  the  Bishoprics 
of  Tourney,  Lincoln  and  York,  and  Primate  of  England.  He 
eclipsed  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury  and  every  churchman 
about  him,  and  became  Cardinal  and  Legate,  receiving  his  Cardi- 
nal's hat  from  Leo  X,  and  this  year  (1514)  he  was  advanced  to  the 
office  of  Lord  High  Chancellor  of  England.  The  emoluments  of 
these  offices  were  enormous,  but  did  not  satisfy  the  Cardinal,  who 
is  known  to  have  received  gifts  and  pensions  from  the  King  of 
Spain,  the  Duke  of  Milan  and  other  foreign  potentates.  He  greatly 
applauded  Leo  X  when  he  burnt  Luther's  books  declaring  him  a 
heretic,  and  next  received  from  his  Holiness  a  bill  granting  him 
authority  to  visit  the  monasteries,  and  conferring  on  him  the  tenth 
of  all  the  revenues  of  the  English  clergy.  Henry  VHI  also  em- 
powered him,  in  the  year  1518,  to  confer  letters  patent  of  denizen 
under  the  great  seal ;  and  then  to  make  out  confres  (V  elire  Cthe 
writ  to  choose  a  bishop),  royal  assents,  and  restitutions  of  tempor- 
alities of  ecclesiastical  dignities,  as  well  as  to  take  the  homages  and 
fealty  of  all  persons,  which  might  be  due  to  the  crown  for  such 
temporalities — sources  of  the  most  extraordinary  influence  and 
emolument.  He  now  became  Bishop  of  Bath  and  Wells,  and  of 
the  rich  abbey  of  St.  Albans ;  then  the  administrator  of  the  sees 
of  Worcester  and  Hereford.  In  the  same  year  he  received  the 
grant  of  the  office  of  Bailiff  of  the  Lordship  of  Chestnut  in  Hert- 
fordshire and  park  keepers  of  Bantingsly.  He  sympathized  strong- 
ly with  the  Pope  when  Luther  burnt  the  Pope's  canon  law  and 
styled  Leo  a  persecutor,  a  tyrant  and  the  very  antichrist.  Leo  X 
granted  him  authority,  in  1521,  to  make  50  knights,  50  courts 
palatine,  40  apostolic  notaries,  whose  privileges  were  equal  to 
those  made  by  the  Pope  himself,  namely,  to  legitimize  bastards, 
and  confer  degrees  in  arts,  in  law,  medicine  and  divinity,  and  also 
to  grant  all  sorts  of  dispensations.  Another  bull  empowered  him 
to  check  and  put  down  the  new  Protestant  heresies.  The  Cardi- 
nal this  year  sent  an  ambassador  to  the  King  of  F  ranee  and  the 
Emperor  Charles  V,  and  he  received  a  grant  of  9,000  crown?  from 
the  Emperor  besides  2,500  in  lieu  of  a  former  grant. 

During  the  year  1522  he  held  the  see  of  Durham,  and  in  1524 
received  a  new  bull  from  the  Pope  confirniing  his  power  to  visit 
and  suppress  disorderly  monasteries,  and  in  1529  became  Bishop 
of  Winchester.  In  a  word,  he  had  bestowed  upon  him  an  amount 
of  honor,  preferment,  and  emolument  for  25  years  the  like  of  which 
the  world  had  never  seen  and  will  never  probably  see  again.  His 
revenues  exceeded  those  of  the  King  himself  or  of  any  Sovereign 
ij3  Europe.     His  state,  too,  was  in  keeping  with  it.     At  mass  he 


RAMBLING    REiMINISCENCES.  9I 

was  served  by  Dukes  and  Earls,  who  took  the  assay  of  his  wine 
on  their  knees,  and  held  him  his  basin  at  the  lavatory. 

He  was  the  steady  friend  of  learnino-  and  of  learned  men — inti- 
mate with  Erasmus  and  induced  the  Kings  to  invite  both  Titian  and 
Raphael  to  England — he  established  seven  lectures  at  Oxford,  a 
college  at  Ipswich,  and  founded  Christ  Church,  Oxtord,  in  which 
the  royal  princes  and  the  sons  of  the  nobility  to  this  day  continue 
to  receive  their  educations.  He  had  a  passion  for  building,  and 
was  always  thus  engaged,  and  his  structures  were  remarkable  for 
their  superiority  to  those  of  the  age. 

.When  in  the  zenith  of  his  prosperity  he  built  Hampton  Court 
1516-T526.  He  was  the  actual  ruler  of  England,  both  in  Church 
and  State  by  the  favor  of  the  King  and  the  courtesy  of  the  Pope. 
Flattered  and  sought  by  power  ahd  beauty  at  home,  and  by  the 
crowned  heads  of  all  Europe,  he  was  hated,  yet  feared  by  court- 
iers ;  haughty,  arbitrary  and  vindictive  ;  possessed  of  revenues  to 
which  the  incomes  of  the  greatest  nobles  were  poor,  he  lived  in  a 
splendor  and  state  such  as  became  only  a  reigning  Prince,  and  ex- 
pressed his  swelling  vanity  in  the  well  known  words,  ''Ego  et  rex 
meus'' — I  and  my  king. 

His  palace,  composed  of  five  courts  and  two  hundred  and  eighty 
chambers  for  the  use  of  guests,  and  rooms  for  eight  hundred  ser- 
vants, wa^  the  only  place  where  he  could  entertain  the  crowds  that 
flocked  by  every  road  to  pay  him  court.  Such  was  the  magnifi- 
cence of  the  establishment  that  Grotius,  the  great  jurist,  who  was 
envoy  to  England,  in  1615,  says  of  it:  "If  any  Briton  is  ignorant 
of  what  is  wealth,  let  him  repair  to  Hampton  Court,  and  thereaf- 
ter having  viewed  all  the  Palaces  of  the  Earth  he  will  say,  'these 
are  the  palaces  of  Kings,  but  this  of  the  Gods.'  "  His  household 
consisted  of  fifteen  knights,  forty  squires  and  eight  hundred  ser- 
vants, many  of  whom  were  the  seedy  and  beggard  descendents  of 
the  proud  old  barons.  His  steward  was  a  Dean,  his  treasurer  a 
Knight,  his  Comptroller  an  Esquire — he  disdained  to  have  an  or- 
dinary person  filling  an  office  near  his  person.  His  head  cook 
daily  wore  damask,  satin  or  velvet,  with  a  heavy  gold  chain  about 
his  neck.  He  held  a  levee  every  mornmg  at  which  he  appeared 
habited  in  red  velvet,  after  which  he  went  abroad  in  State.  Af- 
fecting humility,  he  sometimes  went  abroad  as  a  priest,  mounted 
upon  a  mule,  but  the  animal  was  always  concealed  under  a  moun- 
tain of  trappings.  His  own  attire  was  princely,  and  his  retinue 
on  these,  as  on  all  other  occasions,  numerous  and  brilliant.  The 
saddle  and  saddle  cloth  were  of  costly  crimson  dye,  fringed  with 
gold.  The  costliest  sables  covered  his  shoulders,  gloves  of  red 
silk  his  hands,  and  his  shoes  were  inlaid  with  diamonds  and  pearls. 
Belore  him  marched  two.priests  carrying  silver  crosses,  before  them 


92  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

two  gentlemen  bearing  silver  staffs,  before  these  went  a  nobleman 
of  high  order,  bearing  his  cardinal's  hat,  and  foremost  of  all  rode 
a  pursuivant-at-arms  with  a  massive  mace  of  silver.  The  train 
was  made  up  of  other  officers  and  attendants.  Such  were  the 
splendid  gildings  with  which  he  covered  his  pretended  humility. 

The  cardinal  lived  many  years  in  this  kind  of  splendor,  long 
enough  to  learn  that  it  was  all  vanity.  He  served  a  fickle  and  ca- 
pricious master.  A  turning  point  came  in  his  fortunes  and  he 
sank  more  rapidly  than  he  had  risen.  The  crisis  in  his  fortunes 
was  his  remonstrance  against  the  King's  marriage  with  Anne 
Bolyne.  The  favor  of  the  King  was  withdrawn,  and  a  plot  de- 
vised for  his  destruction.  Arrested  upon  a  charge  of  high  trea- 
son, his  parks  and  palaces,  his  treasures  and  revenues,  all  the 
sources  of  his  princely  income,  were  forfeited.  Crushed  and  bro- 
ken in  spirit,  he  became  a  prey  to  melancholly  and  disease  and 
soon  descended  into  the  grave.  His  head  was  thus  saved  from 
the  block. 

His  fortunes  and  his  fall  are  thus  finely  described  by  Dr.  John- 
son in  his  "Vanity  of  Human  Wishes:" 

In  full  blown  dignity  see  Wolsey  stand, 

Law  in  his  voice  and  fortune  in  his  hand, 

To  hinuhe  church,  the  realm,  their  powers  consign; 

Through  him  the  rays  of  royal  bounty  shine  ; 

Turn'd  by  his  nod  the  stream  of  honor  flows  : 

His  smile  alone  security  bestows  : 

Still  to  new  heights  his  restless  wishes  tow'r. 

Claim  leads  to  claim  and  power  advances  pow'r  : 

Till  conquest  unresisted,  ceased  to  please. 

And  rights  submitted  left  him  none  to  seize. 

At  length  his  sovereign  frowns,  the  train  of  state 

Mark  the  keen  glance,  and  watch  the  sign  of  hate 

Where'er  he  turns,  he  meets  a  stranger's  eye. 

His  suppliants  scorn  him,  and  his  followers  fly  I 

Now  drops  at  once  the  pride  of  awful  state. 

The  golden  canopy,  the  glittering  plate, 

The  regal  palace,  the  luxurious  board, 

The  liveried  army  of  the  menial  Lord. 

With  age,  with  cares,  with  maladies  opprest. 

He  seeks  the  refuge  of  monastic  rest : 

(irief  adds  disease,  remember'd  folly  stings. 

And  his  last  sighs  reproach  the  faith  t)f  Kings. 

The  palace  has  been  occupied  since  the  days  of  Henry  VHI  by 
by  many  remarkable  persons.     His  son,  Edward  VI,  was  born   at 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  93 

» 

Hampton,  where  a  few  days  afterwards  his  mother,  Jane  Seymour 
died.  Here  Henry  VHI  married  Catharine  Parr,  Here  Bloody 
Mary  and  her  husband,  Philip  of  Spain,  passed  their  honeymoon. 
Here  the  Princess  Elizabeth  was  entertained,  and  afterwards  where 
the  potent  queen  sometimes  assembled  her  Court.  Here  James 
I  of  Scotland  summoned  his  famous  conference  of  bishops  and 
Puritan  leaders  to  confer  on  the  settlement  of  religion.  Here  in 
1605,  was  entertained  Francis,  Prince  of  Vandemois,  son  of  the 
Duke  of  Lorraine,  and  a  large  company,  the  feastings  and  festiv- 
ities lasting  a  fortnight,  and  here  died  in  1618,  Anne  of  Denmark. 
Charles  I  was  imprisoned  here  and  made  his  celebrated  attempt  to 
escape  from  it  November  nth,  1647.  During  the  plague  in  Lon- 
don, Charles  I  and  Katharine  of  Braganza  fled  to  Hampton  and 
remained  there  until  it  was  over,  68,000  persons  having  perished. 
Here  they  were  when  the  great  fire  occurred,  which  destroyed 
eighty  nine  churches,  including  St.  Paul's,  and  13.200  houses,  and 
covered  436  acres  of  ground  with  ruins. 

Thinking  persons  were  all  disposed  to  acknowledge  the  hand  of 
God  in  thesejudgments,  on  account  of  the  sins  of  both  King  and 
people.  But  in  the  midst  of  justice  it  was  tempered  by  mercy,  and 
that  which  at  the  time  was  a  dire  calamity,  has  since  proved  a  last- 
ing blessing  ;  the  ravages  of  the  plague  were  stayed  by  the  fire, 
which  completely  purified  the  atmosphere,  and  the  old  city  with 
its  narrow  streets  being  destroyed,  way  was  made  for  the  election 
of  one  more  commensurate  with  the  requirements  of  modern 
times  :  and  the  mighty  city  which  excites  the  astonishment  of  for- 
eigners, which  is  now  the  emporium  of  the  commerce  of  all  na- 
tions, and  which  is  justly  styled  the  metropolis  of  the  world,  arose 
from  the  great  fire  of  1666. 

Here  Oliver  Cromwell,  the  destroyer  of  the  monarchy  and  the 
founder  of  the  short  lived  Republic,  held  his  court,  as  well  as  at 
Windsor  and  Whitehall.  There  his  daughter  Elizabeth  married 
Lord  Falconburg  and  another  daughter  Lord  Rich,  heir  of  the 
Earl  of  Warwick.  Like  many  modern  Republicans,  Cromwell 
courted  rather  than  disdained  a  connection  with  the  nobility.  Here 
he  devised  his  foreign  policy  which  was  so  eminently  successful,, 
resulting  in  the  defeat  of  the  Dutch  and  the  capture  of  Jamaica 
from  the  Spaniards,  events  which  forced  Mazarin  to  acknowledge 
him,  and  the  Venetians  and  Swiss  to  seek  his  friendship.  When 
wearied  and  worn  with  the  strife  of  parties  at  Whitehall,  disap- 
pointed in  his  hopes  at  home,  and  his  life  ma  ie  wretched  by  the 
constant  dread  of  assassination,  here  he  retired  for  rest,  and  to  con- 
template the  more  agreeable  prospect  of  his  power  abroad,  where 
he  was  botii  feared  and  respected.  And  here  no  doubt  he  saw 
signs  of  popular  weariness  with  the  Protectorate,    and    may    have 

(24) 


94  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 

feared,  without  disburdening  his  soul,  the  ruin  of  his  Comnion- 
weahh  based  upon  the  bible,  and  the  restoration  of  the  son  ^f 
England's  murdered  King.  It  was  here  that  he  lost  his  favorite 
daughter,  Mrs.  Claypole,  who  exhorted  him  on  her  deathbed  to  re- 
trace his  steps  and  seek  forgiveness  from  God.  Mrs.  C.  evidently- 
believed  in  the  divine  right  of  kings,  and  feared  thai  her  father  in 
seeking  to  give  the  English  people  a  Republican  government  was 
engaged  in  the  devil's  work.  It  was  while  he  was  at  Hampton  that 
the  founder  of  the  Society  of  Friends,  the  celebrated  George  Fox, 
visited  Cromwell  to  beg  that  he  would  put  a  stop  to  religious  per- 
secutions. His  visits  were  much  enjoyed  by  Cromwell,  who  is 
reported  to  have  said  to  him  on  one  occasion  before  parting, 
"Come  again,  George,  come  often,  I  feel  that  if  thou  and  I  were 
oftener  together,  we  should  be  nearer  to  each  other." 

The  year  1660  saw  the  end  of  the  Republic  and  the  restoration 
of  Royalty  in  the  person  of  the  murdered  King's  son.  It  was  one 
ot  the  greatest  misfortunes  possible  to  the  Ehglish  people  that 
Charles  II  ascended  the  throne  without  any  restrictions  to  the 
Royal  power,  and  without  any  security  for  the  rights  of  the  people. 
The  merrie  monarch  immediately  began  his  revels  at  Hampton 
Court  where  he  assembled  such  profligate  friends  as  his  brother 
James.  Buckingham,  Jermyn,  Grimmont,  Rochester — his  own 
and  their  favorites  or  shameless  mistresses.  Such  diversions,  such 
libertinism,  such  scoffing  at  religion,  such  abandonment  of  decency 
and  such  rampant  licentiousness  was  never  before  seen  at  the  En- 
glish Court.  Shortly  after  the  rye-house  plot,  Charles  left  Hamp- 
ton Court  and  boldly  walked  about  the  west  end  of  London.  His 
brother  James  meeting  him  one  day  in  Hyde  Park,  expressed  his 
surprise  at  his  venturing  abroad  in  such  perilous  times.  "James," 
replied  the  King,  "take  you  care  of  yourself;  I  am  safe.  No 
man  in  England  will  kill  me,  to  make  you  king." 

Charles  II  fell  a  victim  to  his  excesses,  dying  in  1685,  and  was 
succeeded  by  his  uncle,  James  II.  whose  arbitrary  measures  and 
open  coalitions  with  the  Roman  Catholics,  and  his  sensual  life 
caused  him  to  be  driven  out  of  the  Kingdom.  The  English  throne 
was  now  oflered  to  William  and  Mary,  who  accepted  it,  and  the 
•glorious  and  last  revolution  in  England,  that  of  1688,  occurred. 
It  gave  the  people  freedom  in  the  midst  of  servitude,  order  in  the 
tnidst  of  anarchy.  Representative  Government  as  it  now  exists  in 
England  dates  from  this  epoch — the  people  owe  to  it,  under  Prov- 
idence, whatever  of  law,  security  of  property,  peace  and  happiness 
they  enjoy.  William  and  Mary  made  Hampton  Court  their  prin- 
cipal, as  it  was  theif  favorite  abode.  Subsequent  monarchs,  down 
to  George  I,  have  occasionally  resided  at  Hampton  Court,  but 
nothing  occurred  of  such  a  character  as  to  be  worthy  of  mention. 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  95 

And  in  1838  the  Palace  and  grounds  were  thrown  open  to  the 
public,  after  the  custom  of  the  French  and  other  Continental  na- 
tions, and  the  people  are  permitted  to  visit  the  galleries,  gardens 
and  parks  on  so  many  days  each  week. 

The  picture  galleries  contain  more  than  two  thousand  paintings, 
the  most  celebrated  of  which  are  the  Cartoons  of  Raphael,  which 
were  painted  during  the  last  years  of  the  great  master's  life  and 
have  been  called  the  "glory  of  England  and  the  envy  of  Europe." 

Raphael's  peculiar  genius  is  displayed  in  those  great  works  in 
various  respects.  His  power  of  invention  appears  in  the  most 
advantageous  light  and  nowhere  do  we  so  correctly  feel  how  deep- 
ly Raphael  had  penetrated  into  the  pure  spirit  of  the  Bible  as  in 
these  designs. 

The  first  cartoon  is  the  death  of  Ananias,  which  is  distinguished 
b}'  all  the  qualities  which  constitute  and  mark  the  genius  of  paint- 
ing. 

The  second  is  Elymas,  the  sorcerer,  struck  blind  by  St.  Paul, 
Then  follows  the  lame  man,  restored  by  St.  P*eter  and  St.  John, 
the  miraculous  draught  of  fishes — St.  Paul  and  St.  Barnabus  at 
Lystra— St.  Paul  preaching  at  Athens  and  the  Last  Charge  of 
Peter.  These  seven  cartoons  are  all  that  remain  of  a  number 
sent  to  Arras  that  tapestries  might  be  worked  from  them.  When 
they  reached  there,  the  weavers  commenced  their  work  of  de- 
struction, by  cutting  each  of  them  perpendicularly  into  slips  in 
order  to  work  conveniently  after  them.  In  some  unaccountable 
way,  after  the  tapestries  were  taken  to  Rome,  the  paintings  were 
neglected  and  remained  buried  in  oblivion  till  Rubens,  who 
knowing  their  value,  urged  King  Charles  I  to  rescue  them.  In- 
vestigations led  to  their  discovery  in  a  cellar  at  Arras.  All  but 
these  seven  were  destroyed.  The  pieces  of  these  were  collected 
and  reunited. 

Some  of  the  pictures  in  these  galleries  are  chef  d'  ouvres,  hut 
many  possess  no  merit.  The  frescoes  are  by  Verrio,  with  whose 
peculiar  style  the  reader  is  already  acquainted.  VVolsey  Hall  is 
hung  with  ancient  tapestry,  deliniating  the  history  of  Abraham. 
The  first  of  them  represents  the  appearance  of  God  to  Abraham, 
and  the  Patriarch's  benediction,  declaring  that  through  him  all 
the  nations  of  the  earth  should  be  blessed— a  fact  strangely  for- 
gotten by  those  who  at  present  cast  such  obloquy  on  the  unbe- 
lieving Jew.  The  second  represents  the  Nativity  of  Isaac,  and 
the  peculiar  ceremony,  still  characteristfc  of  the  Jews,  attendant 
on  his  birth.  The  third  exhibits  Abraham  sending  out  a  servant 
to  seek  a  wife  for  Isaac,  his  son.  The  fourth  sets  forth  the  return 
of  Abraham  and  Sarah  from  Egypt,  laden  with  the  gifts  of  the 
Egyptians.     In  the  fifth  is  delineated   the  reception  of  the  three 


96  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

angels  by  Abraham.  The  sixth  shows  Abraham  as  purchasing 
the  cave  of  Macpelah  as  place  of  sepulchre  for  Sarah,  his  wife. 
The  seventh  represents  the  separation  of  Abraham  and  Lot,  when 
they  had  resolved  on  following  different  courses.  The  eighth 
and  last  exhibits  the  Patriarch  as  about  to  offer  up  his  son  as  a 
sacrifice.  The  tapestries  look  as  old,  if  not  as  familiar,  as  the  his- 
tory they  hand  down. 

The  pleasure  grounds,  containing  about  fifty  acres,  are  hand- 
somely laid  out  and  improved  and  ornamented  with  jets  d'eau. 
Three  large  paths  diverge  from  the  principal  entrance,  which  are 
lined  with  trees  and  fringed  with  flowers.  The  garden  for  fruits 
and  vegetables  contains  twelve  acres,  in  which  there  is  a  grape 
vine  planted  from  a  slip  in  1769,  festooned,  under  a  glass  house 
built  for  its  protection,  which  bears  annually  frpm  two  to  three 
thousand  bunches  of  grapes.  The  gardner  is  allowed  to  charge 
a  small  fee  for  showing  it  to  visitors,  which  yields  him  a  handsome 
annual  revenue.  From  the  private  grounds  a  gateway  leads  into 
Bushy  Park,  which  contains  about  eleven  hundred  acres  and  is 
five  miles  in  circumference,  Here  there  is  a  stately  avenue  of 
chestnuts  in  which  there  is  a  circular  piece  of  water  ornamented 
by  a  statue  of  the  goddess  Diana.  Space  does  not  admit  of  any 
description  of  this  or  the  other  parks,  gardens  and  pleasure 
grounds,  which  form  so  charming  a  feature  in  English  scenery. 

These  grounds  and  park,  which  we  have  said  are  opened  to 
the  public,  attract,  owing  to  their  proximity  to  the  densely  popu- 
lated suburbs  of  London,  large  crowds,  vvho  avail  themselves  of 
the  privilege  to  spend  a  day  wandering  beneath  the  leafy  bowers 
and  by  the  sparkling  waters  Upon  holidays  it  is  thronged  by 
tens  of  thousands.  On  Sunday  the  working  classes  flock  hither 
for  rest  and  relaxation,  the  picture  galleries  being  opened  after 
ten  o'clock  for  their  especial  benefit.  The  good  use  to  which  it 
is  now  turned,  cannot  fail  to  exert  a  happy  influence  upon  the 
minds,  manners  and  tastes  of  the  people.  Though  there  are 
many  good  paintings  in  the  galleries  and  some  master  pieces,  it 
would  be  difficult  to  find  anywhere  a  larger  collection  of  pictorial 
trash.  They  have  not  been  executed  by  royal  academicians, 
some  of  whom  enjoy  world  wide  fame,  but  who  are  sneered  at  on 
the  continent  as  England's  best — Europe's  worst  painters;  on  the 
contrary,  these  are  generally  the  productions  of  Court  favorites, 
who  knew  much  better  how  to  "crook  the  pregnant  hinges  of  the 
knee,"  than  to  use  their  pencils. 

Separating  at  Hampton  from  the  party,  to  keep  an  appointment 
in  another  quarter,  we  hurried  to  Leather  head,  one  of  the  prettiest 
villages  in  Surry,  thence  to  Dorking,  the  loveliest  country  town 
in  England.     We  had  accepted  an  invitation  to  visit  the  Bouchiers, 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENSES.  97 

whose  ancestors  had  Hved  in  Virginia  previous  to  the  Revolution. 
Rev.  Jonathan  Boucher,  or  Bouchier,  as  the  name  is  now  spelt,  was 
Rector  of  Hanover,  then  of  St.  Mary,  Virginia,  and  subsequently 
Rector  of  St.  Anne,  Annapolis,  previous  to  1776.  On  the  adop- 
tion of  the  Declaration  of  Independence,  Mr.  Bouchier,  who  was 
a  Royalist  in  his  political  sentiments,  returned  to  England.  Some 
years  subsequent  to  this  period  he  published  in  London  a  work  on 
the  causes  and  consequences  of  the  American  Revolution.  He 
always  retained  a  friendly  feeling  for  our  country  and  people — 
more  particularly  the  people  of  Virginia  and  Maryland — and  trans- 
mitted it  to  his  family  and  immediate  connections. 

With  these  hospitable  friends  we  remained  some  days,  during 
which  time  we  made  many  excursions  in  the  country — one  of  them 
to  Deepdene,  the  princely  estate  of  the  Hope  family,  where  Dis^ 
raeli  wrote  Coningsby.  While  in  this  lovely  rural  district,  mixing 
with  the  country  people,  we  heard  much  of  the  territorial  aristoc- 
racy and  the  evils  attending  the  present  land  laws.  The  views  we 
then  heard  have  a  present  interest  in  view  of  the  agitation  in  both 
England  and  Ireland  for  a  change  n  these  laws,  rent  tenures, &c. 

The  landless  people  complained  that  they  were  entirely  ignored 
by  the  proprietors,  who  rebuked  all  who  dared,  in  any  way,  di- 
rectly or  indirectly,  to  express  an  opinion  about  the  lands  which 
did  not  belong  to  them  and  in  which,  therefore,  they  have  no  con- 
cern. The  champions  of  the  people  asserted  that  the  land  was 
originally  the  property  of  all,  but  by  confiscations  and  other  legal- 
ized forms  of  robbery,  at  various  periods  in  English  history,  it  had 
found  its  way  into  the  hands  of  first  one  and  then  another  Royal 
favorite.  In  process  of  time  it  has  fallen  into,  possession  of  a  few 
privileged  families  ;  the  number  of  landlords  being  only  about  30,- 
000  in  a  population  of  nearly  20,000,000.  They  further  alleged 
that  it  is  kept  in  their  possession  by  the  law  of  primogeniture,  by 
entails  and  by  the  difficulties  thrown  in  the  way  of  its  acquisition 
and  the  enormous  expense  attending  its  conveyance.  At  present 
the  sale  and  transfer  of  the  soil  is  fenced  round  with  difficulties  and 
expenses,  rendering  them  nearly  prohibitory  to  all  except  persons 
of  great  wealth.  One  gentleman  said  he  had  rented  a  house  at 
^£45  a  year  and  had  paid  legal  expenses  connected  with  the  lease, 
of. ^15.  It  was  the  general  opinion  that  the  laws  which  were  passed 
in  lormer  times  by  the  aristocratic  few,  in  order  to  secure  their  ill- 
acquired  estates,  were  now  producing  the  most  disastrous  results. 
The  discovery  of  steam  had  opened  a  way  for  supplying  England 
with  the  wheat,  meat,  cheese,  &c.  of  America,  Russia  and  other 
large  grain  and  beef  producing  countries  and  this  had  entirely 
changed  the  position  of  the  tenant  and  all  those  who  derived  their 
living  from  the  soil.     Yet  landlords  wished  to  keep  up  the    prices 


roc^ 


9^  RAMBLING    KEMINISCENCES. 

of  their  land  to  the  point  they  had  reached  when  there  was  no 
such  competition  and  the  tenant  was  protected  by  corn  laws. 

This  state  of  affairs  has  led  to  a  surrender  of  many  leases  and 
there  are  no  applicants  for  the  farms  An  En^^lish  friend  in  De- 
cember last,  (1879)  in  a  letter  to  the  writer,  stated  that  the  Earl  of 
Aberg^avenny  had  seventeen  farms  thrown  upon  his  hands  in  the 
county  of  Kent,  and  the  Duke  of  Marlborough  4,000  acres  in  Ox- 
fordshire. This  same  Duke,  John  W.  Churchhill,  is  now  Lord- 
Lieutenant  of  Ireland,  and  is  charged  by  Mr.  Parnell  with  the 
partizan  distribution  of  the  funds  raised  by  voluntary  contributions 
in  America  and  elsewhere  for  the  relief  of  the  starving  Irish. — 
Many  of  those  tenant  farmers  who  have  the  capital  are  leaving,  or 
preparing  to  leave  Engl  md  to  become  citizens  of  the  United  States. 
Heaven  be  praised,  there  is  plenty  of  land  here,  room  for  all. 

We  have  recently  seen  a  statement  of  one  of  the  great  landed 
proprietors  of  the  reasons  which  prevent  his  pursuing  a  more  lib- 
eral course  towards  his  tenantry.  It  is  in  substance,  that  his  rents 
could  not  be  reduced,  because  in  addition  to  his  own  family,  many 
others  derived  an  income  from  his  landed  property.  Tenants  nat- 
urally enough  reply  that  they  do  not  care  to  cultivate  land  at  a 
loss  to  themselves,  merely  for  the  purpose  of  supplying  old  dowa- 
gers and  younger  sens  with  the  means  of  living  in  idleness  and 
luxury. 

At  a  meeting  of  his  tenantry  which  recently  took  place,  the 
Marquis  of  Ailsbury  told  a  piteous  tale  of  how  he  was  encumbered 
with  a  whole  park  of  poor  relations.     He  said  :  • 

"Protection  had  been  talked  of  as  a  remedy  for  the  present  dis- 
tress, but  he  urged  them  not  to  expect  it.  Protection  was  alto- 
gether out  of  the  question.  No  Ministry  would  dare  to  attempt 
it.  for  it  could  not  be  introduced  without  causing  a  revolution  in 
the  country.  A  tax  on  the  food  of  the  people  was  an  impossibility. 
He  had  come  into  an  estate  which  was  most  heavily  mortgaged, 
and,  in  addition  to  a  large  family,  he  had  three  dowagers  to  pro- 
vide for,  who,  it  should  be  remembered,  would  not  take  twenty  per 
cent,  off  their  allowances  because  times  were  bad,  and  he  had  re- 
duced rents  that  extent.  As  a  consequence  he,  of  course,  had 
very  little  to  live  upon." 

Consequently  the  heavily  burdened  Marquis,  with  his  three 
country  seats  of  Tottenham  Park,  in  Wilts,  Jerveux  Abbey,  in 
Yorkshire,  and  East  Sheen,  in  Surry,  and  his  London  Mansion, 
could  not  do  what  he  would  have  wished  to  do,  namely,  abate 
something  considerable  from  the  rents  of  his  tenantry. 

Unfortunate  nobleman  !  His  estates  encumbered  by  the  neces- 
sity of  keeping  up  four  establishments,  that  he  may  be  said  to 
"live  j>retty  much  like  a  gentleman,"  with  the  further  payment   of 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  99 

thousands  to  three  dowagers,  and  these  old  ladies  determined  on 
maintaining  their  style  and  state,  on  keeping  their  coaches,  butlers, 
footmen,  horses  and  dogs,  no  matter  how  hard  the  times,  how  de- 
pressed the  agricultural  interest,  how  impoverished  the  te/jants, 
how  niggardly  the  wages  of  farm  laborers.  But  the  noble  Marquis* 
troubles  did  not  end  here.  He  is  still  further  weighted  by  a  num- 
ber of  younger  sons  who  must  have  their  allowances  that  they  too 
may  be  considered  gentlemen.  Our  readers  may  wish  to  know 
what  a  gentleman  is  in  this  tight  little  Island.  This  is  the  picture 
of  an  English  gentleman  drawn  by  one  of  the  greatest  of  English- 
men : 

'Terhaps  you  think  I  should  not  class  myself  among  gentlemen, 
and  yet  I  have  as  good  a  right  to  the  name  as  most  of  the  set.  I 
belong  to  no  trade  :  I  follow  no  calling;  I  rove  where  I  list,  and  I 
rest  where  I  please.  In  short,  I  have  no  occupation  but  my  indo- 
lence, and  no  law  but  my  will.  Now,  sir,  may  I  not  call  myself  a 
gentleman  .'*'' 

Ask  one  of  the  dowagers  to  reduce  their  establishment  by  a 
couple  of  flunkeys  and  a  carriage  or  so.  in  consideration  of  the  im- 
poverished state  of  those  who  furnish  them  the  means  of  maintain- 
ing it,  and  you'll  get  an  angry  negative.  Ask  one  of  these  younger 
sons  to  live  upon  a  less  income  and  he  will  tell  you  the  idea  is  pre- 
posterous. "Demme,  you  insult  me.  How  can  I  gamble  for  large 
sums  on  a  diminished  income?"  Let  farmers,  laborers  and  all 
connected  with  the  land  go  to  grief,  come  to  the  poor  house,  be 
driven  from  the  country,  dowagers  and  younger  sons  and  others, 
hangers  on  planted  upon  the  land.will  have  their  uttermost  farthing. 

Neither  the  Marquis  of  Ailsbury,  with  three  dowagers  on  his 
back,  and  v/ith  tithe  collectors,  tax  gatherers  and  younger  sons  at 
his  heels,  and  overweighted  tenants  worrying  his  lands,  nor  those 
under  him  can  compete  with  the  United  States  in  grain  growing 
and  cattle  breeding,  and  therefore  the  end  is  close  at  hand. 

Nothing  but  a  thorough  repeal  of  the  land  laws  will  render  the 
soil  as  productive  and  remunerative  as  it  might  be.  Some  means 
should  be  adopted  for  preventing  thousands  and  tens  of  thousands 
of  idle  and  useless  persons  being  quartered  upon  its  product.  A 
man  should  be  enabled  to  buy  an  acre  ofland  as  easily  and  readily 
as  he  can  a  leor  of  mutton.  That  mischievous  law  of  primogeniture 
which  places  immense  estates  in  the  hands  of  one  person,  who 
must  either  provide  for  a  number  of  others  out  of  its  revenues,  or 
by  quartering  them  indirecdy  on  the  public,  should  be  abolished. 

In  Alfred  A.  Walton's  history  of  the  landed  tenures  of  Great 
Britain  and  Ireland  he  remarks  on  this  subject : 

"There  can  be  no  doubt  that  a  considerable  portion  of  our  op- 
erative classes  and  manufacturing  population,  as  well  as  a    portion 


lOO  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

of  the  manufacturers  themselves,  would  have  been  employed  in 
ao^ricultural  pursuits,  had  the  land  not  been  toa  ^reat  extent  lock- 
ed up  against  their  erjterprise  and  industry.  And  this  must  con- 
tinue so  long-  as  the  usurpation  of  the  soil  by  the  few  to  the  exclu- 
sion of  the  many  continues  and  the  agricultural  population  kept 
stationary  or  non-increasing,  which  is  the  social  effect  of  our  pres- 
ent territorial  arrangements,  while  the  'surplus  population,'  as  it 
is  termed,  is  compelled  to  take  refuge  in  our  large  towns  and  cen- 
tres of  industry.  It  will  therefore  be  seen  that  the  freedom  of  the 
soil  is  of  the  highest  importance  to  the  whole  community  ;  both 
to  the  operatives,  the  mechanics  and  artizans  of  our  large  towns  as 
well  as  the  trading  community,  and  likewise  to  the  farmers  and 
laborers  in  the  rural  districts." 

Every  man,  therefore,  be  he  landless  or  landlord,  is  more  or  less 
interested  in  the  laws  affecting  the  owmership.  the  transfer  and 
cultivation  of  the  soil.  In  the  present  condition  of  affairs,  En- 
glish tenants  cannot  compete  with  foreign  farmers;  the  system 
tends  to  pauperise  the  landlords  as  well  as  those  dependent  upon 
them.  It  encourages  the  breeding  of  a  race  of  high  class  paupers 
that  are  too  lazy  to  work  themselves,  but  not  too  proud  to  live 
upon  the  labor  of  others.  They  are  a  curse  to  the  country.  In  a 
word,  however  prized  by  the  privileged  few,  the  land  laws  must 
be  repealed.  Such  are  the  views  of  the  mass  of  the  British  peo- 
ple, whether  English,  Scotch  or  Irish. 

But  all  the  evils  of  the  system  in  England  are  intensified  in 
Ireland.  In  that  unhappy  country  there  are  20,ooo,oco  acres  of 
land,  and  6,000,000  of  acres  are  owned  by  292  f)ersons,  and  744 
persons  own  9,612,000,  or  nearly  one-half  of  Ireland  is  owned  by 
less  than  800  persons.  And  there  are  twelve  men  who  own  1,310,- 
000  acres  or  about  108,000  acres  each.  And  the  three  or  four 
millions  of  people  who  are  the  tenants  of  the  great  landlords  and 
tenants  at  will,  having  no  lease,  and  liabletohave  their  rents  raised, 
or  to  be  turned  out  at  short  notice.  Worse  still,  these  gre.it  land- 
lords do  not  live  in  Ireland,  but  receive  and  spend  the  rents  they 
extract  from  their  tenantry  in  other  countries.  And  the  absentees 
acquired  their  property  by  the  confiscation  of  about  3,000,000  of 
acres  in  the  reign  of  James  I,  of  seven  or  eight  million  during  the 
protectorate  of  Cromwell,  and  of  1,000,000  under  William  III. 
In  other  words,  nearly  all  the  land  of  the  tenantry  has  been  taken 
away  from  the  legal  owners  and  given  to  strangers.  Since  that 
period  the  penal  laws  of  England  have  inflicted  indescribable  in- 
justice and  wrong  on  the  Catholic  population  in  Ireland — so  much 
so  that  not  more  than  one-tenth  of  the  land,  in  recent  times,  has 
been  in  the  hands  of  Catholic  proprietors — the  bulk  of  the  Irish 
population. 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  lOI 

With  such  a  terrible  history  of  wrong,  cruehy  and  oppression, 
who  is  to  blame  in  the  present  day,  for  Irish  disloyalty  and  Irish 
lamine.  Who  does  not  see  that  the  time  for  a  change  in  the  land 
laws  has  come. 


CHAPTER  X. 


HARROW-ON-THE-HILL — BYRON  S     EARLY     DAYS — HAMPSTEAD 

HEATH — RURAL  SPORTS — KISSING  IN  THE  RING,  ETC. 

— HIGH  GATE,  ETC. 


We  had  often  taken  counsel  with  the  more  intimate  of  our  new 
made  English  friends,  as  to  an  excursion  on  foot  to  that  metro- 
politan locality,  Harrow  on  the-hill.  Indeed  it  had  been  agreed 
that  we  should  "do"  the  place  on  the  first  fme  day.  This  was  not 
long  in  coming.  The  loth  of  May  invited  us  forth.  Our  party 
consisted  of  some  famous  walkers,  among  them  R.  B.  Barnwell,  of 
Charleston,  S.  C,  Haviland  Burke,  since  M.  P.,  for  one  of  the 
South-western  shires,  the  heir  and  representative  of  the  great 
statesman  and  orator,  Edmund  Burke,  and  Dr.  Granville,  ("Old 
Granny,"  as  he  was  familiarly  styled)  of  the  British  Museum. 

Our  route  lay  through  Westbourne  Grove  and  Kensall  Green. 
The  days  of  May  are  ever  fair  in  Old  England,  yet  fairest  and 
best  of  May  days  seemed  this  particular  one.  Pure,  calm  and 
sunny,  we  cannot  describe  how  much  we  enjoyed  the  sweet,  ex- 
hilirating  atmosphere,  the  rustle  of  leaves,  and  the  ripple  of  sound 
that  gladdened  the  morning.  The  hedges  were  decked  with  a 
profusion  of  primroses,  butter-cups,  daisies,  cowslips  and  other 
wild  flowers  unknown  in  America,  except  in  conservatories. 
Across  the  highway  the  shadow  of  many  an  old  oak  was  cast. 
Everywhere  there  was  a  divine  fullness ;  a  mysterious  sense  of 
expansion  suggested  the  unseen  effort  of  the  sap  in  motion. 
Glittering  things  glittered  more  than  ever  ;  loving  natures  became 

(26) 


I02  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

more  tender.  There  was  a  hymn  in  the  flowers,  and  a  radiance 
in  the  sounds  of  the  air.  The  widely  diffused  harmony  of  nature 
burst  forth  on  every  side.  All  things  which  felt  the  dawn  of  life 
invited  others  to  put  forth  shoots.  A  movement  coming  from  be- 
low, and  also  from  above,  stirred  vaguely  all  hearts  susceptible  to 
the  scattered  and  subterranean  influence  of  germination.  The 
flowers  shadowed  forth  the  fruit  as  young  n^.aidens  dream 
of  love.  It  was  nature's  universal  bridal.  It  was  fine, 
bright  and  warm.  Through  the  hedges  in  the  meadows 
children  were  seen  laughing  and  playing  at  their  games.  The 
fruit  trees  filled  the  orchards  with  their  heaps  of  white  and  pink 
blossoms.  In  the  fields  were  primroses,  daftodils,  hyacinths, 
cowslips,  daisies,  violets,  milfoil,  speedwell.  Flowering  vines  cov- 
ered the  thatched  roofs  with  colored  patches.  Women  were 
platting  hives  in  the  open  air  ;  the  bees  were  abroad,  mingling 
their  hummings  with  the  music  of  the  air. 

On  one  side  of  the  road  there  was  a  firm,  smooth  raised  side- 
walk, about  ten  feet  wide,  which  made  the  walking  perfectly  com- 
fortable— as  much  so  as  on  the  pavements  of  a  city.  This  atten- 
tion to  the  wants  of  foot  passengers  is  general  throughout  Eng- 
land. This  makes  it  plain  that  the  laws,  even  in  aristocratic  Al- 
bion, are  not  enacted  entirely  in  the  interests  of  those  who  ride  in 
chaises.  This  particularity  as  to  the  comfort  of  walkers  arises,  in 
part,  from  the  high  value  which  is  set  by  the  English  upon  human 
life  ;  which  causes  them  to  sacrifice  to  its  preservation  many  con- 
siderations of  interest  and  convenience..  The  high  speed,  too,  with 
which  they  drive  in  the  country,  never  stopping  to  avoid  pedes- 
trians, make  these  side-walks  a  kind  of  necessity. 

While  resting  at  an  inn  on  the  roadside,  regaling  our:: elves  with 
a  glass  of  ale,  each  of  us  having  ordered,  "a  pint  of  the  bitter  in 
the  pewter" — one  of  those  roadside  inns,  which  we  never  see 
without  associating  them  with  the  old  coach  and  four,  and  the 
'ostler  in  fustian  shorts  and  yellow  leggins,  standing  with  a  water- 
ing pail  at  the  'osse's  'ead's,  a  drove  of  sheep  passed  on  to  Smith- 
field  market.  I'he  shepherd,  who  seemed  hot  and  thirsty,  stop- 
ped to  have  his  'arf  and  *arf.  and  being  a  talking  man.  informed 
us,  while  emptying  his  mug,'that  his  sheep  would  fetch  ;^2.r2 
each  from  the  butchers.  "Ees,  Ees  they'll  fetch  that  or  the 
butchers  be  a  precious  lot  o'ard  screws.  Pen't  that  lots  o' 
money  ?"  and  without  waiting  for  a  reply  he  walked  off  praising 
his  sheep,  which  had  been  well  kept  together  by  one  of  those  in- 
telligent creatures,  the  shepherd's  dog. 

Oiv'l^'^ving  the  inn,  we  continued  our  way  by  a  gradually  as- 
cending and  winding  road  until  we  reached  the  summit  of  Har- 
rvow  hill.     The  panoramic  view  which  meets  the  eye  of  the  spec- 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  IO3 

tator  from  this  eminence  is  beautiful  indeed— London  tu  the  east 
reposes  Hke  a  huge  monster  under  its  clouds  of  smoke ;  to  the 
south  are  the  famous  Surrey  hills  or  Epsom  downs,  to  the  north, 
the  village  of  Stanmore  and  the  baronial  seat  of  the  Marquis  of 
Abercorn,  and  to  the  west  the  distant  turrets  of  Windsor  Castle 
stand  out  in  gloomy  grandeur  against  the  sky. 

Harrow,  which  was  formerly  a  market  town  and  place  of  some 
consequence,  has  dwindled  into  comparative  unimportance.  It  is 
a  unique  and  antique  town,  marked  by  the  quaint  and  picturesque 
architecture  of  the  Elizabethan  regime.  Formerly  the  residence 
of  the  Arch  bishops  of  Canterbury,  it  is  now  only  known  and  dis- 
tinguished as  the  seat  of  one  of  England's  four  great  schools. 
I'his  school  counts  among  its  former  pupils  some  of  the  most  dis- 
tinguished names  in  British  history,  such  as  Sheridan,  Byron, 
Theodore  Hook,  the  wit  and  novelist,  Earl  Dalhousie,  governor 
general  of  India,  Earl  Hardwick,  Earl  Westmoreland,  Sir  Henry 
Lytton  Bulwer,  the  Earl  of  Aberdeen  and  Lord  Palmerston. 

It  was  here  that  Byron  was  placed  at  an  early  period  and  where 
he  was  associated  with  Sir  Robert  Peel,  Lords  Clare,  Powerscourt 
and  De  la  Warr,  the  Duke  of  Dorset  and  other  eminent  men  with 
whom  he  formed  passionate  friendships  or  contracted  life  long 
enmities.  He  made,  as  everybody  knows,  but  little  progress  in 
his  studies,  but  gave  such  evidences  of  talent  that-  the  Head 
Master,  speaking  of  him  about  this  time,  said  that  he  had  talents, 
which  would  add  lustre  to  his  rank. 

The  school  was  founded  by  John  Lyon  in  the  i6th  century,  and 
contains  on  an  average  800  scholars  varying  in  age  from  twelve  to 
twenty.  As  we  proceeded  through  the  town  from  the  King's 
head  hotel,  we  saw  large  numbers  of  these  healthy  looking  lads 
strolling  through  the  streets  or  listlessly  idling  near  the  cake 
shops.  The  yard  of  the  school  house  was  also  well  filled  with 
others  engaged  in  play.  Lyon  took  a  deep  interest  in  the  school, 
and  before  his  death  drew  up  a  set  of  statutes  for  its  government, 
with  full  instructions  for  the  disposal  of  the  estates,  which  he  in- 
tended to  appropriate  to  its  support.  Among  these  statutes  was 
one  requiring  a  sufficient  sum  to  be  set  aside  for  the  support  of 
four  of  the  most  distinguished  scholars  at  the  universities,  two  at 
Cambridge  and  two  at  Oxford.  In  selecting  them,  he  required 
that  preference  should  be  given  to  his  own  kin,  to  natives  of  Har- 
row and  to  such  as  are  "most  mete  for  towardness,  poverty  and 
painfulness."  To  obtain  the  first  position  at  the  school  is  a  high 
honor,  and  brings  the  successful  pupil  prominently  to  the  public 
attention.  His  future  course  is  watched  with  no  small  interest. 
Under  the  head  of  University  intelligence,  the  success  of  the  Ox- 
ford dons  and  the  Cambridge  wranglers  is  annually  given  through 


I04  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

all  the  newspapers  to  the  country.     Thus  the    Times   refers   to  a 
Cambridge  commencement. 

UNIVERSITY    INTELLIGENCE. 

Cambridge,  January  24. 

The  following  list  of  honors  at  the  Bachelor  of  Arts'  Commence- 
ment was  issued  to-day.  The  moderators  were  Percival  Frost, 
M.  A.,  St.  John's;  Robert  Baldwin  Hayward,  M  A.,  St.  John's. 
Examiners:  Arthur  Cockshott.  M.  A.,  Trinity;  Anthony  William 
Wilson  Steel,  M.  A.,  Gonville  and  Caius.  Wranglers :  Dr. 
Moulton,  St.  John's;  2,  Darwin.  Trinity. 

[Here  follows  a  list  of  forty-seven  young  men  upon  whom 
honors  were  conferred.  Of  the  two  highest  the  first  and  second 
senior  wranglers,  the  Times  proceeds  to  say  :] 

Mr.  John  Fletcher  Moulton.  of  St.  John's  College,  the  Senior 
Wrangler,  the  third  son  of  the  late  Rev.  J.  E.  Moulton,  a  Wes- 
leyan  minister,  was  born  at  Madeley,  in  Shropshire,  in  Novem- 
ber, 1844,  and  is  therefore  just  twenty-three  years  of  age.  He 
was  educated  at  Kingswood  School,  Bath,  under  Mr.  H.  Jeffer- 
son, M.  A.  Lond,  until  the  age  of  sixteen,  when  he  presented  him- 
self at  the  Senior  Oxford  Middle-class  Examination  and  was 
placed  first  in  the  general  list.  For  the  next  three  3'ears  he  was 
engaged  in  tuition,  during  which  time  he  matriculated  at  the  Lon- 
don University,  and  carried  off  the  exhibition  in  mathematics,  be- 
sides passing  the  honorary  examinations  in  classics  and  chemistry. 
From  this  time  he  seems  to  have  devoted  his  attention  more  par- 
ticularly to  mathematics,  and  his  career  has  been  one  of  unin- 
terrupted success.  In  April.  1864,  he  obtained  the  first  Minor 
Scholarship  for  mathematics  at  St.  John's  College,  Cambridge, 
and  in  June  gained  the  Mathematical  Exhibition  at  the  first  B.  A. 
Examination  at  the  London  University.  He  subsequently  grad- 
uated there,  gaining  the  Mathematical  Scholarship.  In  October 
of  the  same  year  he  commenced  residence  at  Cambridge,  and 
during  the  whole  of  his  University  career,  he  has  been  at  the  head 
of  his  college  examinations.  In  June,  1866.  he  was  elected  a 
Foundation  Scholar  of  his  College. 

Mr.  E.  J.  Routh,  of  Pttcrhouse  (Senior  Wrangler  in  1854),  was 
Mr  Moulton's  private  tutor,  thus  adding  another  to  the  long  suc- 
cession of  senior  wranglers  who  have  read  under  his  care.  The 
Rev.  J.  V.  Durell  was  his  college  tutor. 

Mr.  George  Howard  Darwin,  of  Trinity  College,  the  second 
wrangler,  the  second  son  of  Mr.  Charles  Darwin,  the  well  known 
author  of  the  "Origin  of  Species,"  is  in  his  23rd  year,  and  is  a  native 
of  Down,  in  Kent.  He  was  educated  at  the  Clapham  Grammar 
School,  under  the  Rev.  Charles  Pritchard,  President  of  the  Royal 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENSES.  I05 

Astronomical  Society,  and  Hulsean  Lecturer  at  the  University  of 
Cambridge  for  1867,  the  late  Head  Master,  and  the  Rev.  Alfred 
VVrigley,  M.  A.,  F.  R.  A.  S.,  the  present  Head  Master.  In  the 
Easter  Term,  1866,  he  was  elected  a  Foundation  Scholar,  and  he 
has  been  three  times  Prizeman  of  his  college.  Like  the  Senior 
Wrangler,  Mr.  Darwin's  private  tutor  was  Mr.  Routh,  his  college 
tutor  being  the  Kev.  R.  Burn. 

The  schools  of  Eton,  Rugby  and  Winchester  hold  equal  rank 
with  Harrow.  The  head  scholars  from  each,  who  annually  enter 
the  Universities,  compete  on  their  new  theatres  for  scholastic  hon- 
ors amid  the  anxieties  of  their  friends  and  the  general  expectation 
of  the  public.  The  successful  collegian  is  almost  certain  to  pass, 
in  time,  from  the  University  to  some  high  position,  sometimes  into 
Parliament  and  sometimes  at  the  bar.  This  was  the  case  with 
William  Pitt,  Horace  VValpole,  Sir  Robert  Peel,  Lords  Aberdeen, 
Palmerston  and  many  others.  This  fact  refutes  a  charge  brought 
against  the  English  by  the  French  that  they  are  insensible  to  liter- 
ary merit  and  h*eap  honors  upon  actresses,  danseuses  and  song- 
stresses, who  have  the  entretothe  houses  of  the  first  nobility,  while 
a  poor  Iiomme  de  Icitres  is  is  left  to  starve  in  a  garrett. 

It  is  true  that  Milton  sold  Paradise  Lost  for  ^15,  while  Charles 
II,  to  whom  the  British  Parliament  granted  six  millions  of  dollars 
annually  for  his  support,  was  spending  hundreds  of  thousands  upon 
his  mistresses  and  bastards.  Yet  even  then  all  England  was  not 
insensible  to  the  genius  of  Milton,  or  enamored  of  the  depravity 
of  Charles.  The  poet's  admirers  were  found  among  those  from 
whom  the  chief  glory  of  a  nation  arises,  and  the  sovereign  was; 
the  leader  of  society  and  those  whom  we  might  not  inaptly  style 
the  "dangerous  classes."  The  one  was  serving  his  God  and  coun- 
try, reflecting  honor  upon  human  nature,  and  the  other  entailing  a 
line  of  spurious  nobility  upon  England.  Ignorant  people  in  our 
day  look  up  to  and  reverence  those  whom  we  are  taught  to  style 
"our  betters,"  and  who  are  they?  Charles  II,  by  his  mistress, 
Lucy  Walton,  had  a  son  whom  he  created  Duke  of  Monmouth  ; 
by  another  favorite,  Nell  Gwynn,  a  second  son,  whom  he  created 
Duke  of  Richmond,  and  by  Barbara  Viliiers  he  had  three  sons, 
one  created  Duke  of  Cleve  and,  the  second  Duke  of  Grafton,  and 
the  third  Duke  of  Northumberland.  These  were  a  few  only  of 
his  favorites  and  his  bastards,  and  he  indulged  them  to  the  utmost 
of  his  power.  All  these  mistresses  and  their  bastard  sons  were 
recognized  at  court  and  supplied  with  money  to  maintain  their 
"exalted"  rank.  His  unhappy  Queen  was  obliged  to  humiliate 
herself  and  treat  them  with  courtesy,  even  familiarity.  The  men 
who  surrounded  the  King  were  of  like  character,  and  while 
Charles'  reign  was  the  most  scandalous  which  England   has   ever 


I06  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 

seen,  those  of  Other  and  even  very  much  later  sovereigns  have 
been  distrraced  by  great  and  disgusting  immorality  and  hcentious- 
ness.  Mr.  C.  S  Parnell,  who  is  creating  so  much  interest  in 
this  country  by  his  eloquent  appeals  on  behalf  of  his  suffering 
countrymen,  recently  repelled,  in  a  vigorous  style,  peculiar  to 
himself,  an  attack  made  upon  his  veracity  by  Lord  Alfred  S. 
Churchill,  brother  of  the  Duke  of  Marlborough.  When  speaking 
in  Springfield.  Massachusetts,  January  30,  Mr.  Parnell  referred  to 
Lord  Alfred  Churchill's  cable  dispatch  and  said  ; 

"This  young  nobleman  says  that  my  statement  that  the  relief 
fund  of  the  Duchess  of  Marlborough  is  being  administered  for 
political  purposes  is  false.  Now  I  have  the  best  and  most  recent 
information  from  the  distressed  districts  that  my  statement  is  ab- 
solutely true  and  that  all  persons  out  of  favor  with  their  landlords 
are  precluded  from  participation.  More  than  one  parish  priest 
also  h;is already  complained  that  the  fund  is  being  administered 
for  sectarian  purposes.  The  word  of  a  descendant,  on  the  one 
hand,  of  the  notorious  Sarah  Jennings,  mistress  of  the  Duke  of 
York,  and  on  the  other  hand,  of  Churchill,  first  Duke  of  Marlbor- 
borough,  of  whom  Macaulay  write  as  follows:  'That  he  owed 
his  rise  to  his  sister's  dishonor,  and  that  he  had  been  kept  by  the 
most  profuse,  imperious  and  shameless  of  harlots,'  will  be  scanned 
somewhat  closely  by  the  American  people,  who  at  least  can  boast 
that  their  ancestors  were  honest  men  and  women." 

This  vigorous  retort  tells  incidentally  the  story  of  the  reign  of 
George  III,  Society  took  its  toiie  from  the  court,  and  we  doubt 
not  in  the  days  to  which  we  refer,  a  pretty  ballet  girl  was  more 
highly  esteemed  in  West  end  society  than  a  scholar,  literary  man 
or  statesman.  Happily  those  days  have  passed  away,  let  us  hope 
never  to  return.  Under  the  reign  of  Victorii,  the  Court  has  set 
an  example  of  purity  and  domestic  virtue,  worthy  of  all  praise. 
The  taunt  of  the  French  in  the  present  day  is  an  anacronism. — 
However  true  it  once  was,  it  is  not  so  in  the  present.  This  may 
be  asserted  with  force,  notwithstanding  the  many  vices  which  tar- 
nished the  character  of  the  Prince  of  Wales  in  his  earlier  days,  and 
which  he  has  been  weak  ^nd  wicked  enough  to  carry  into  maturer 
years. 

While  the  facts  we  have  mentioned  in  connection  with  the  dis 
tinguished  University  student,  attest  the  favor  with  which  the  En- 
glish of  our  day,  look  upon  the  successful  student  and  literary  man, 
it  cannot  be  denied  that  the  chief  importance  is  attached  to  wealth 
and  anc;ent  lineage.  When  during  the  Premiership  of  the  E.irl  of 
Derby— 1867-1868 — he  was  supposed  to  be  dangerously  ill  and 
tlie  politicians  were  casting  about  for  a  successor,  the  old  grandees, 
their  organs  and  supporters,  spoke  in  the  following  deriding   tone 


RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES.  ICy 

of  Mr.  Disraeli,  who  for  many  years  was  the  intellectual  leader — 
the  man  of  brains — in  the  Conservative  party.  (Though  this  was 
evidently  his  position,  it  was  5/ears  before  the  old  fogies  would  ac- 
knowledge it.)  Who,  they  asked,  should  be  Premier  if  the  failing 
health  ot  Lord  Derby  made  his  resignation  necessary  ?  Mr.  Dis- 
raeli ?  Well  it  can  hardly  be  pleasant  to  Mr.  Disraeli  to  find  that 
very  few  think  of  him  as  the  coming  man.  He  is  unconnected, 
landless,  wanting  in  rank  and  social,  position,  utterly  unable  to 
keep  his  party  together,  said  even  conservatives,  and  his  oppo- 
nents expressed  themselves,  we  need  hardly  say,  far  more  emphat- 
ically. In  the  popular  mind  it  seemed  necessary  in  a  Prime  Min- 
ister that  he  should  be  connected  with  the  half  dozen  great  houses, 
who  are  styled  in  England  "our  governing  families;"  that  he 
should  be  a  large  landed  proprietor,  which  would  imbue  him  with 
what  are  called  conservative  influences  ;  that  he  should  if  possible 
be  a  nobleman,  that  is  to  say  be  of  such  rank  as  would  give  him 
commanding  social  position.  All  this  was  supposed  to  be  neces- 
sary, but  the  sequel  has  proved  that  they  are  not  always  so — that 
the  world  moves. 

In  spite  of  his  social  and  pecuniary  deficiencies,  his  Jewish  ori- 
gin, his  low  estate,  and  the  bitter  hatred  of  an  influential  section 
ot  Parliament,  that  section  led  by  Daniel  OConnell  who  denounc- 
ed him  as  a  miscreant  and  wretch  whose  "life  is  a  living  lie"  and 
finally  as  the  "heir-at  law  of  the  blasphemous  thief  who  died  im- 
penitent on  the  cross."  Mr.  Disraeli  has  risen  by  force  of  his 
splendid  genius  to  the  highest  position  in  the  state,  having  been 
twice  Preinier.  Durmg  the  latter  and  his  present  term  of  office, 
this  remarkable  man  has  extended  the  British  Empire  by  vast  ac- 
quisitions of  territory  in  Africa  and  in  India,  made  millions  of 
British  subjects  and  fenced  them  round  about  with  what  he  called 
a  "scientific  frontier."  He  has  also  added  tbe  title  of  Empress  to 
that  of  Queen  of  the  United  Kingdom  of  Great  Britain  and  Ire- 
land, or  as  it  is  colloquially  said  in  England,  'made  an  Empress." 
At  the  same  time,  he  has  pursued  his  policy  of  "Empire  and  Lib- 
erty," and  claims  that  he  has  preserved  the  sfatus  quo  in  Europe, 
and  maintained  for  England,  peace  with  honor.  So  much  for  a 
man  ol  the  people,  for  a  man  of  genius.  A  man  too  who,  as  Mr. 
Bright  once  said,  "has  not  a  drop  of  English  blood  in  his  veins" 
and  who  consequently  met  unusual  opposition,  and  had  to  over- 
come extraordinary  prejudice.  He  has  that  which  is  better  than 
blue  blood — to  wit,  brams. 

And  now  after  his  extraordinary  career,  his  marvelous  success, 
in  his  seventy-sixth  year,  he  is  not  alTected  with  the  weakness  of 
age,  but  is  vigorous  with  the  strength  of  manhood,  having  a  seat 
in  the  House  of  Lords  and  possessing   in   a  remarkable    manner 


I08  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

its  confidence.  There  is  only  one  other  man  in  England  to  whom 
the  destinies  of  the  vast  British  Empire  and  the  prospects  of  Ire- 
land are  likely  to  be  entrusted  with  better  results,  namely :  Mr. 
Gladstone,  Lord  Beaconsfield's  life-lont^  rival  and  political  oppo- 
nent. Of  Mr.  Gladstone  it  may  be  truly  said  that  he  is  Mr.  Dis- 
raeli's superior  every  way ;  more  brilliant  in  oratory,  more  ster- 
ling in  integrity,  more  sincere  in  his  convictions,  more  statesman- 
like in  his  views,  more  terribly  earnest  in  all  he  says  and  does. — 
To  him  the  fortunes  of  the  British  Empire  might  be,  and  in  our 
opinion,  ought  to  be,  entrusted  by  that  people  who  will  never  cease 
to  celebrate  his  pure  and  immortal  fame. 

It  was  often  said  during  our  residence  in  England,  that  the  Con- 
servative party,  without  making  any  professions  or  promises,  car- 
ried through  more  measures  of  reform  than  the  so-called  Liberals. 
There  was  some  color  of  reason  for  this  remark,  the  fact  being  that 
the  Liberal  party  ever  showed  the  way  of  reform  to  the  Tories. — 
This  was  the  case  as  to  (^^atholic  emancipation  ;  the  corn  laws,  and 
with  the  reform  act  of  1867.  For  many  years  previously,  the  Lib- 
erals preached  in  vain  that  the  admission  of  the  working  classes 
to  the  franchise  was  required  by  the  state  of  society,  and  that  it 
would  strengthen  the  constitution.  When  the  Tories  came  into 
power,  they  who  had  always  bitterly  opposed  the  idea,  faced  about 
and  passed  the  act  extending  the  suffrage.  Thus  the  Liberal  par- 
ty, with  such  leaders  as  Gladstone  and  Bright,  has  ever  been  the 
pioneer  of  reform,  though  the  Tory  ministers  have  from  time  to 
time  sought  to  gain  the  popular  applause  and  reap  the  fruits  of 
victory  by  passing  the  best  conceived  and  most  cherished  liberal 
measures.     But  to  return  from  this  digression. 

Beyond  the  school  house  stands  the  Parish  church,  surrounded 
by  generations  of  tombstones  One  of  the  first  pointed  out  to  us 
was  that  known  as  "Byron's  Tomb,"  from  the  fact  that  it  was  his 
favorite  resting  place.  He  thus  refers  to  it  in  his  childish  recollec- 
tions : 

"Oft'  when  oppress'd  with  sad,  foreboding  gloom 

T  sat  reclined  upon  our  favorite  tomb." 

It  is  said  that  he  would  spend  hours  here  engaged  in  thought, 
chewing  the  cud  of  sweet  and  bitter  fancies,  brooding  in  lonliness 
over  the  first  stirring  of  passion  and  genius  in  his  soul,  and  occasion- 
ally, perhaps,  indulging  in  those  bright  forethoughts  of  fame,  under 
the  influence  of  which,  when  little  more  than  fifteen  years  of  age, 
he  wrote  these  remarkable  lines : 

*'My  epitaph  shall  be  my  name  alone  ; 
If  that  with  honor  fail  to  crown  my  clay, 
Oh  may  no  other  fame  my  deeds  repay  ; 


RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES.  IO9 

That,  only  that,  shall  single  out  the  spot, 
By  that  remember' d  or  by  that  forgot." 

Secured  in  the  walls  of  the  church  is  an  ancient  brass.  It  was 
taken  from  the  floor  of  the  church,  where  it  was  half  concealed  by 
a  pew.  It  is  engraved  with  a  grotesque  figure  intended  to  repre- 
sent the  founder  of  the  school,  and  inscribed  with  a  highly  eulo- 
gistic epitaph,  in  what  then  passed  for  English,  but  which  is  now, 
hardly  intelligible. 

After  an  uncommonly  pleasant  day  spent  in  wandering  about 
the  streets  and  neighborhood  of  Harrow,  we  brought  up  at  the 
Kingshead  Inn  for  a  6  o'clock  dinner.  We  had  intended  return- 
ing to  London  by  a  night  train,  but  clouds  were  gathering  in  the 
sky,  and  before  we  were  half  through  with  "our  mutton,"  gusts  of 
wind,  more  like  the  blasts  of  March  than  the  zephyrs  of  May, 
drove  the  rain  drops  beating  in  sheets  against  the  windows. 
Arise  and  wander  forth?  No,  it  was  quickly  decided  that  we 
should  spend  the  night  under  the  friendly  shelter  of  the  Inn. 
"You  have  decided  wisely,"  said  a  quiet  gentleman,  whose  name 
we  soon  afterwards  learnt  was  Evershort.  This  respectable 
looking  person  was  the  only  occupant  of  the  room  when  we  en- 
tered, and  was  dining  at  a  small  table  on  a  chop  and  a  pint  of 
stout.  Dressed  in  the  subdued  habit  of  a  rector,  he  had  some- 
thing decidedly  clerical  in  his  sleek  appearance.  "Yes,'^  he  con- 
tinued, "we  shall  have  a  bad  night.  Better  remain  here,  and  if 
we  can  get  some  cards  we  may  spend  a  pleasant  evening  in  spite 
of  wind  and  weather.  I  suppose  you  all  play  whist;  for  myself 
I  am  very  fond  of  a  rubber." 

.This  speech,  following  what  some  of  our  party  regarded  as  Mr. 
Evershort's  rather  expressive  silence,  took  us  by  surprise,  and  our 
conversation  hung  fire  for  a  few  minutes  like  a  damp  squib, 
Barnwell,  however,  who  possessed  many  of  the  good  points  of  a 
man  of  the  world,  and  was  devoted  to  the  well  known  game, 
acted  as  our  speaker.  He  politely  responded  to  the  advances  of 
our  civil  neighbor,  fell  into  a  pleasant  chat  with  him  and  quickly 
pledged  us  for  a  lubber.  Meanwhile  we  had  discussed,  soto  voce, 
whether  we  had  not  come  upon  a  professional  card  sharper,  who 
only  wanted  the  opportunity  to  relieve  us  of  our  guineas  in  the 
neatest  possible  manner.  The  South  Carolinian  turned  toward 
us,  as  Mr.  Evershort  left  the  room  in  search  of  his  pipe,  and  re- 
assured us  by  pronouncing  the  quiet  man  as  of  rigid  views  mor- 
ally and  ecclesiastically — in  others  words,  said  Barnwell,  "he's  the 
c'rrect  card." 

Our  social  meal  over,  a  comfortable  cloud  was  blown,  the  quiet 
man  having  rejoined  the  party,  lit  his  pipe  and  ordered  a  glass  of 

I 


no  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

brandy  and  soda.  The  card  table  was  now  opened  in  front  of  the 
jocund  fire  under  the  brilHant  gas  chandalier  and  the  rubber  com- 
menced. Time  wore  on  without  any  noteworthy  incident,  and 
we  separated  for  the  night  at  twelve  o'clock,  little  having  been 
won  or  lost.  Mr.  Evershort,  however,  was  indebted  to  Barnwell 
in  the  sum  of  thirty  shillings  and  being  short  of  change  promised 
to  hand  it  to  him  the  following  morning.  This,  by  the  way,  he 
forgot  to  do  no  doubt  in  the  hurry  of  leaving.  When  we  de- 
scended next  morning  to  the  breakfast  room,  the  waiter  informed 
us  that  our  sleek  friend  had  left  two  hours  before.  Barnwell  was 
"flabbergasted"  at  this  communication,  and  positively  declined  to 
enter  into  any  kind  of  fun  over  the  "c'rrect  card." 

Immediately  after  our  breakfast  we  began  to  consider  of  the 
most  agreeable  way  of  returning  to  town.  This  leads  us  to  en- 
quire, is  motion  synonymous  with  pleasure?  and  is  it  sufficient  to 
agitate  ourselves  to  be  amused  ?  In  that  case  we  take  too  much 
amusement.  What  shall  we  do  this  morning?  What  shall  we 
do  this  afternoon  ?  What  shall  we  do  this  evening  ?  It  is  the 
diurnal  refrain,  and  there  we  go  on  foot,  on  horseback,  in  car- 
riages, thinking  of  nothing,  going  everywhere,  with  enthusiasm, 
laughter  and  jests,  which  return  with  us,  sit  down  at  table  with  us, 
dance  with  us,  sing  with  us  and  do  not  leave  us  even  at  the  silent 
game  and  when  holding  the  "c'rrect  card." 

But  to  proceed.  Wishing  to  enjoy  the  refreshment  of  another 
country  walk,  we  descended  the  hill  on  the  eastern  side  and  struck 
off  for  the  northern  heights  of  London  by  Frognal  road  and 
West  end  lane.  This  route  led  us  to  Hampstead  and  Highgate, 
two  of  the  most  charming  environs  of  the  metropolis.  Near  the 
latter  the  Right  Honorable  Angela  Georgiana;  Baroness  Burde-tt- 
Coutts,  to  give  her  the  full  title  recently  conferred  on  her  by  the 
British  government  in  recognition  of  her  many  shining  virtues, 
resides  in  Holly  Lodge,  surrounded  by  beautiful  gardens  and 
grounds.  The  hills  on  which  these  villages  are  situated,  though 
only  five  miles  from  the  Thames,  are  from  three  to  four  hundred 
feet  higher  than  the  surface  of  the  water  at  Blackfriars  Bridge. 
Their  elevation,  the  purity  of  the  air  and  water  and  the  existence 
of  one  or  more  mineral  springs  in  the  neighborhood,  have  long 
made  Hampstead  and  Highgate  favorite  residences  for  commer- 
cial and  professional  men.  Rents  are  consequently  from  twenty 
to  twenty-five  per  cent,  higher  than  in  any  part  of  London,  but 
Ihe  West  end,  and  all  the  country  hereabout,  is  covered  with  at- 
tractive looking  dwellings. 

These  stone,  brick  and  stuccoed  villas,  with  their  well  kept 
lawns  and  dainty  flower  beds,  and  surrounded  by  handsome 
grounds  of  from  two  to  five  acres,  with  Hampstead's  free  village 


I 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  Ill 

life  and  retired  haunts,  render  it  the  most  desirable  locality  as  a 
residence  near  London. 

Hampstead  Heath  is  a  rough,  broken  common,  covered  with  a 
stunted  growth  and  famous  for  its  bracing  air.  In  early  days  it 
was  a  haunt  of  wild  beasts.  When  these  were  driven  off.  it  be- 
came a  place  of  concealment  ior  more  dangerous  characters, 
thieves,  highwaymen,  robbers,  fugitives  from  justice  and  other 
outlaws.  In  the  course  of  time  the  drivellers  of  fashion  displaced 
the  highwaymen  and  it  degenerated  into  a  disreputable  watering 
place.  About  a  century  and  a  half  since  Hampstead  occupied  on 
the  north  the  same  position  that  Richmond  assumed  on  the  south 
side  of  the  Thames.  It  was  patronized  by  the  idle,  the  opulent, 
the  unscrupulous.  The  Royal  family  composed  of  George  I, 
about  the  time  he  created  his  mistress,  Sophia  Walmoden,  Count- 
ess of  Yarmouth,  were  in  the  habit  of ''honoring"  Hampstead  with 
their  presence.  On  every  side  there  were  houses  of  amusement 
and  dissipation — ball  rooms,  gambling  hells,  gin  palaces,  and 
bagnios,  and  all  patronized  by  the  elite.  It  was  also  a  kind  of 
Gretna  Green,  where  unfortunate  lovers,  east  of  Temple  bar  and 
Blackfriars  road,  were  united  in  "private"  for  the  public  amuse- 
ment. In  a  comedy  acted  at  Drury  Lane  Theatre  in  1706,  en- 
titled''Hampstead  Heath,"  many  amusing  passages  occur,  which 
vividly  describe  the  scenes  and  company  in  those  da3's. 

Half  a  century  later  "the  Wells"  figure  as  semi-fashionable 
haunts  in  the  pages  of  Smollet's  Roderic  Raiidoni  and  Fanny 
Burney's  Evelina,  and  yet  a  generation  or  two,  and  we  find  them 
satirized  by  Lord  Byron  in  the  Childe  Harold  as  the  Sabbath 
haunts. 

"Where  the  spruce  citizen,  washed  artizan, 
And  snug  apprentice  gulp  their  weekly  air. 
The  coach  of  hackney,  whiskey,  ohe  horse  chair 

:}«  *  Hs:  *  * 

To  Hampstead  Brentsford  Harrow  make  repair 

%  -^  %  ^  if 

And  many  to  the  steep  of  Highgate  hie. 

Ask  ye  Boeotian  shades  the  reason  why  ? 

'Tis  to  the  worship  of  the  solemn  Horn 

Grasped  in  the  holy  hand  of  mystery 

In  whose  dread  name  both  men  and  maids  are  sworn 

And  consecrate  the  oath  with  draught  and  dance  till  morn." 

It  must  be  remembered  that  the  expression  "solemn  horn,"  in 
these  lines  bears  reference  to  an  ancient  tavern  known  as  "The 
Horns"  at  Highgate,  the  host  of  which  was  wont  for  many  years 
to  pledge  novices  in  nut  brown  ale,  never   to  eat   brown   bread 


112  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

when  they  could  get  white,  or  to  drink  small  beer,  when  they 
could  get  strong,  &c. — but  with  a  saving  reservation  always,  "un- 
less you  like  the  inferior  article  better."  The  custom  has  long 
since- become  obsolete,  shall  we  add,  the  more's  the  pity  ?" 

Steele  lived  here  about  the  year  17 12,  for  the  then  common  pur- 
pose with  people  who  were  "hard  up,"  of  eluding  the  vigilance  of 
his  creditors.  During  this  period  he  composed  many  of  his  con- 
tributions to  the  Spectator. 

In  Hampstead  Church  there  is  a  tablet  inscribed  to  the  mem- 
ory of  one  Mr.  Waad,  who  is  described  as  the  English  Columbus. 
Some  account  of  his  voyages  are  contained  in  a  work  published 
in  1556,  in  which  it  is  said  that  Waad  being  a  man  of  "goodly 
statue,  and  of  great  courage,  and  given  to  study  of  cosmographic, 
encouraged  divers  gentlemen  and  others,  being  assisted  by  the 
King's  favor  and  good  countenance,  to  accompany  him  in  a  voy- 
age of  discovery  upon  the  Northwest  parts  of  America,  wherein 
his  persuasions  took  such  effect,  that  within  short  space,  many 
guests  of  the  Inns  of  Court  and  of  the  Chancerie,  and  divers 
others  of  good  worship,  desirous  to  see  the  strange  things  of  the 
world,  very  willingly  entered  into  the  action  with  him.  They 
embarked  at  Gravesend  for  Cape  Breton  and  New  Foundland, 
where  they  suffered  from  famine  to  such  an  extent  that  they  cast 
lots  and  devoured  each  other  !  Finally  such  of  them  as  survived, 
among  whom  was  Waad,  were  relieved  by  a  French  vessel  in 
which  they  returned  to  England." 

Whether  this  monumental  eloquence  is  fact  or  fiction  does  not 
appear.  It  strongly  reminds  one,  however,  of  the  witty  remark 
of  a  wanderer  through  a  modern  cemetery  :  "Here  lie  the  dead,, 
and  here  the  living  lie." 

Hampstead  is  not  now  what  it  was.  This  is  fortunate.  With 
characteristic  fickleness,  fashionable  society  long  since  abandoned 
it  for  other  haunts  of  folly  and  dissipation.  The  heath  still  re- 
mains to  some  extent,  the  same  savage  wild,  swept  by  cool  blasts 
and  healthful  breezes;"  the  quaint  red  brick  mansions  of  Tudor 
date  or  brown  and  yellow  edifices  of  Hanoverian  respectability 
still  remain  monuments  of  its  departed  greatness;  the  old  crowd 
of  court  bucks  and  ladies,  "all  air  and  no  dress,"  are  no  where  to 
be  seen  nowadays.  We  are  glad  oi  it.  The  place  still  has,  how- 
ever, many  charms,  and  on  holidays,  presents  no  common  scene 
of  gaiety.  Anew  company,  recruited  from  other  classes,  occu- 
pies the  vacant  places  and  enlivens  the  scene  with  its  coarse  but 
honest  jollity.  It  is  now  the  resort  of  the  inhabitants  of  the 
densely  peopled  districts  of  the  city  who  fly  at  every  opportunity 
from  their  sweltering  confinement  to  luxuriate  in  a  country  at- 
mosphere and  upon  the  sight   of  green  fields.       The    splendid 


RAMBLING    REMINISCENSES.  II3 

saloons  of  the  past,  radiant  with  youth,  beauty,  wealth  and  fashion, 
wit  and  all  the  seductive  allurements  of  polished  vice,  have  given 
place  to  dimly  lighted  tap  rooms,  the  stale  joke  of  the  fat  grocer, 
and  the  reugh  fun  of  the  butcher  boy  and  bar  maid.  In  other 
words,  plain  but  honest  people  replace  the  royal,  noble  and  black^ 
guard  snobs,  swells,  rakes,  blades  and  rascals  of  other  days. 

Our.  visit  to  the  heath  occurred  on  the  occasion  of  the  Easter 
Monday  holiday  when  thousands  of  the  "bold  peasantry,  their 
country's  pride,"  were  mixed  up  with  the  denizens  of  London 
engaged  in  rural  sports.  The  English  are  remarkable  for  their 
love  of  rural  amusements.  One  of  the  sportive  games  was  danc- 
ing on  the  green.  A  large  party  were  assembled,  having  a  "set 
to,"  as  they  called  it,  to  the  music  of  a  violin  and  flagolet.  The 
music  was — 

"Moll  in  the  wad  and  I  fell  oirt. 

And  what  d'ye  think  it  was  about^ 

She  had  money,  I  had  none, 

And  that  was  the  way  the  row  begun." 

The  dancing  was  full  of  the  logic  of  the  toe,  not  to  say  the  fan- 
tastic toe.  Double  quadrills,  eight  on  a  side,  making:  a  set  of 
thirty-two,  were  the  popular  figures.  Dancing  on  the  green  is 
one  of  the  most  ancient  popular  amusements  of  the  rustics.  The 
spirit  of  the  game  consists  in  movement,  restless  activity,  the  ex- 
citement of  motion.  The  young  folks  bound  from  the  ground  as 
if  on  a  spring  board,  advance  and  recede,  grasp  each  other  by  the 
waist  and  fly  about  like  whirligigs,  or  as  Dean  Swift  himself,  much 
given  to  witness  and  even  participate  incognito  m  these  rustic 
frolics,  well  expresses  it  in  his  "O'Rcurk's  Bridal." 

"Hand  in  hand  they  dance  around, 

Cutting  capers  and  ramping  ; 
A  mercy  the  ground 

Does  not  burst  with  the  stamping." 

Everything  about  the  crowd  when  we  saw  it  was  natural,  un- 
affected, full  of  simplicity, — their  features^  complexions,  dress  and 
attitude  corresponding,  and  we  must  confess  that  we  looked  on 
with  approbation,  if  not  admiration.  We  venture  to  record  this 
while  concurring  in  a  general  detestation  of  those  fashionable 
round  dances  so  much  patronized  at  this  day  by  the  gay  world. 
A  reprehensible  kind  of  dissipation  which  has  caused  it  to  be  said 
somewhat  axiomatically  that  a  woman  however  virtuous  she  may 
be,  ceases  to  be  so  after  a  waltz  of  three  or  four  hours.  It  is  a 
physiological  phenomenon,  which  we  limit  ourselves  to  mention- 
ing, that  it  is  no  longer  a  woman  who  is  held  in  the  beau's  arms. 


114  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

no  longfer  a  thinking,  reflecting  human  being,  but  if  it  may  be  so 
expressed,  only  a  sensation  ready  to  quiver  at  the  least  contact. 

At  a  short  distance  another  game  was  progressing,  called  "kiss- 
ing in  the  ring,"  As  this  game  is  played  with  some  difference, 
we  will  describe  it  as  we  saw  it.  A  ring  is  formed  on  the  green  by 
the  young  people  of  both  sexes  joining  hands.  There  are  often 
as  many  as  a  hundred  in  a  single  ring,  a  half  dozen  young  girls  or 
more  then  enter  the  arena,  and  moving  around,  each  selects  the 
handsomest  young  man,  to  whom  she  throws  her  handkerchief; 
she  then  bounds  away,  breaking  through  the  ring  and  flying  over 
the  common,  the  young  man  in  pursuit.  He  does  not  find  it  diffi- 
cult to  overtake  the  blushing  girl,  and  after  considerable  resistance, 
and  no  small  amount  of  rough  embracing,  but  devoid  of  vulgarity, 
she  is  brought  back  to  the  enclosure,  where  in  the  presence  of  all 
she  is  saluted  with  a  smacking  kiss.  They  both  then  join  hands 
and  take  their  position  in  the  ring.  After  all  the  girls  have  thrown 
the  handkerchief  and  gone  through  the  process  of  being  kissed  in 
the  ring,  the  young  men  enter  the  circle  and  throw  a  bandanna  to 
the  romping  girls.  They  in  turn  fly  and  are  pursued  and  brought 
back  and  saluted  in  the  same  hearty  manner.  Frequently  as 
many  as  a  dozen  pairs  are  in  the  circle  at  the  same  time  paying 
the  soft  penalty.  While  this  is  going  on  those  who  form  the  ring 
are  pulling  and  swaying  to  and  fro,  indulging  in  all  kinds  of  mer- 
riment and  not  infrequently  huzzaing  the  too  evident  gusto  with 
which  some  rustic  beau  takes  his  kiss.  This  is  a  favorite  game 
with  maid  servants  and  sailors,  and  many  matches  date  their  origin 
from  this  custom.  Whatever  objection  the  refined  and  elegant 
may  find  to  this  promiscuous  assemblage  of  the  sexes,  it  is  doubt- 
ful whether  anything  more  full  of  innocence  and  gayiety  could  be 
devised  for  the  amusement  of  young  folks.  We  are  satisfied  that 
these  recreations  in  which  the  women  share  or  humanize  by  their 
presence,  are  in  the  highest  degree  conducive  to  the  health  and 
rational  enjoyment  of  the  lower  classes  and  that  the  objection  to 
them  comes  from  old  maids  whose  sensitive  natures  are  unduly 
frightened  at  the  idea  of  collecting  both  sexes  for  the  purpose  of 
recreation.  If  music  and  square  dancing  are  innocent  for  the 
higher  orders,  why  are  they  sinlul  for  the  lower? 

Notwithstanding  all  the  maiden  blues  can  do,  all  the  care  taken 
by  the  ancient  prude  and  spinster  to  banish  everything  like  merry 
making  from  all  but  the  rich,  with  a  view  to  the  public  morals, 
female  chastity  before  marriage  is  confessedly  at  a  low  ebb  among 
the  inferior  classes,  both  in  town  and  country.  And  we  cannot 
but  think  that  it  is  somewhat  due  to  the  course  of  our  spinsters  in 
discouraging  open  air  amusements,  as  they  unquestionably,  to  our 
mind,  tend  to  virtue  rather  than  vice. 


RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES.  II5 

A  pleasant  stroll  of  two  miles  through  a  shaded  lane  on  the  sides 
of  which  at  suitable  intervals,  wooden  benches  are  placed  for  the 
benefit  of  pedestrians,  brings  you  to  Highgate.  These  seats  under 
the  old  oaks  are  favorite  spots,  where  congregate  comfortable 
looking  nurses  around  whom  cluster  children  of  all  ages,  from  the 
rosy  Miss  of  two  years  to  the  stately  gentleman  of  eight.  We 
never  cease. to  admire  the  English  nurses.  They  have  an  especi- 
ally maternal  manner  and  appearance.  Blue  of  eye,  red  of  tint, 
broad  of  shoulder  and  kind  of  tongue,  they  are  the  centre  of  that 
solar  system,  round  which  toddle  and  tumble  in  eccentric  orbits, 
those  wonderful  planets — little  children. 

Such  notices  as  this  on  the  wooden  benches  serve  to  protect 
them:  "Do  not  abuse  what  is  intended  for  the  public  benefit." 
Similar  notices  preserve  the  flowers  and  shrubs  in  all  the  London 
parks.  In  conspicuous  places  on  boards  in  largeietters  the  visitor 
reads:  "It  is  hoped  that  the  public  will  abstain  from  destroying 
that  which  is  cultivated  for  the  public  gratification."  This  is  per- 
fect ;  the  a'm  of  every  society  is  that  each  one  should  be  always 
his  own  constable  and  end  by  not  having  any  other. 

On  the  opposite  side  of  the  Hill  from  Hampstead  and  near  its 
base  in  front  of  a  Tom  and  Jerry  Shop,  fixed  in  the  ground,  on 
the  road  side,  is  a  small  gray  stone  which  marks  the  spot  where 
the  celebrated  Whittington  halted  to  rest  and  ruminate  over  his 
hard  fate  when  leaving  London  for  the  country  and  where,  he 
heard  the  peals  of  the  Bow  bells,  which  seemed  to  utter  the  gentle 
and  heart  cheering  admonition,  "Turn  again  Whittington,  Lord 
Mayor  of  London  town."  Everywhere  in  this  neighborhood  you 
observe  in  the  shop  signs  how  highly  the  memory  of  this  civil 
patriot  and  munificent  benefactor  of  the  poor  is  still  appreciated. 
One  establishment  is  called  "The  Whittington."  Another  "The 
Whittington  Cat."  Another  "Whittington  and  his  Cat,"  nor 
should  we  omit  to  add  that  one  of  the  most  thriving  reunions  of 
the  London  middle-classes  bears  the  name  of  the  "Whittington 
Club." 

The  Hill  is  crowned  by  Highgate  church,  from  the  cemetery 
of  which  a  wide  prospect  of  the  surrounding  country,  including 
the  metropolis,  is  obtained.  Highgate,  like  its  neighbor,  has  long 
been  a  favorite  haunt  of  Londoners,  but  by  reason  of  its  closer 
proximity  to  the  city,  is  rapidly  losing  its  ancient  rural  characteris- 
tics and  becoming  a  modern  town.  As  an  evidence  of  its  remark- 
able healthfulness.  it  is  said  that  not  a  case  of  the  plague  occurred 
heredi:ring  the  period  when  it  scourged  London  in  the  reign  of 
Charles  II. 

The  unfortunate  Arabella  Stuart,  who  was  like  Lady  Catherine 
Gray,  in  close  proximity  to  the  throne,  and  whose  only  crime  was 


Il6  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

marrying  the  man  she  loved,  was  for  some  time  imprisoned  in  a 
house  still  standing  at  Highgate.  She  disguised  herself  in  a  suit 
of  men's  clothes  and  escaped.  Taking  a  boat  on  the  Thames,  she 
soon  got  aboard  a  French  barque  lying  off  Gravesend,  where  she 
wished  to  await  the  arrival  of  her  husband,  Lord  Seymour,  then 
a  prisoner  in  the  Tower,  with  whom  the  projected  flight  had  been 
concerted.  Her  friends  dissuaded  her  from  this  course  and  the 
barque  dropped  down  the  river  and  into  the  channel  where  anchor 
was  cast.  Meanwhile  Seymour  escaped  from  the  Tower  and  pro- 
ceeded down  the  river,  but  not  seeing  the  French  barque,  engaged 
another  vessel  to  land  him  at  Calais,  to  which  place  he  made  good 
his  escape.  His  absence  from  the  Tower  was  soon  discovered  and 
several  ships  of  war  sent  in  pursuit — one  of  which  o-vertook  the 
barque  containing  his  wife,  which  after  a  short  engagement  was 
captured  and  Arabella  Stuart  returned  to  London  where  she  was 
confined  as  a  State  prisoner  in  the  Tower.  She  bore  her  fate  with 
cheerfulness,  when  she  heard  that  her  husband  was  safe  in  France, 
but  her  spirit  was  soon  broken  by  grief  and  solitary  confinement, 
and  she  became  insane  and  died  in  this  condition  after  four  year's 
imprisonment. 

At  the  period  of  the  restoration  Seymour  returned  to  England 
and  was  created  by  Charles  II,  in  grateful  recognition  of  his  fidel- 
ity. Earl  of  Hertford.  He  ever  cherished  a  romantic  affection  for 
the  Lady  Arabella  and  named  his  eldest  daughter  by  his  second 
wife  after  her. 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  lij 


CHAPTER  XI. 


A  LONDON  LAW  COURT — THE  ENGLISH  ON  AMERICA — THE  DUKE 
OF  SOMERSET — THE  LAND  LAWS,  &C  — THE  COURTS  OF  QUEEN'S 
BENCH  AND  EXCHEQUER — NOMINATION  OF  SHERIFFS —LORD 
mayor's  BANQUETS — THE  RIGHT  HON.  WM.  CUBITT,  M.  P.,  LORD 
MAYOR  OF  LONDON  —  A  VILLAGE  GRAVEYARD  —  CURIOUS 
EPITAPHS. 


When  returninjj^  one  day  through  Westminster  Hall,  from  a 
visit  to  the  House  of  Commons,  we  were  struck  with  the  counte- 
nances of  a  number  of  persons  lounging  in  the  neighborhood  of  a 
door,  upon  the  left  hand  side  and  half  way  down  the  vestibule. 
"Easter  term  has  just  begun,"  said  our  companion.  Dr.  Norton 
Shaw,  "let  us  take  a  look  at  the  court." 

"Easter  term  has  begun  !"  What  a  tremendous  meaning  these 
simple  words  have  for  thai  unfortunate  class  of  human  beings 
called  clients.  Almost  unconsciously  we  stopped  to  scrutinize  the 
wretched  people  pressing  towards  the  temple  of  judicature.  Al- 
most every  passion  which  can  excite  the  human  mind  was  depict* 
ed  in  the  countenances  of  that  miserably  agitated  crowd.  There 
was  the  eager,  grasping  creditor,  gloating  over  the  prospect  of 
making  good  his  "pound  of  flesh,"  and  there  his  hapless  victim, 
despair  pictured  in  every  line  of  his  countenance,  and  there  the 
sly,  sinister-visaged  scoundrel  waiting  the  result  of  his  cruel 
plans  to  over  -  reach  the  unwary  victim.  On  every  side 
the  wretched  victims  of  the  law's  uncertainty  and  delay,  of  the 
pettifogger's  rapacity,  the  knave's  talent  for  stirring  up  dissension, 
creating  discord,  and  transferring  to  his  own  pockets  the  substance 
of  the  ignorant,  helpless  and  unwary  who  have  fallen  into  his  hands 
and  are  at  his  mercy. 

With  a  soothing  sense  of  relief  that  we  were  non -litigant  and 
non  expectant,  the  thought  occurred  to  us  whether  it  was  possible 
that  any  human  being  but  a  hungry  attorney  cou'd  look  upon  that 
picture  of  passion,  of  hopes  and  fears,  and  not  feel  that  ignorance 
is  bliss  in  everything  connected  with  suits  in  law  and  suits  in 
equity. 

.  During  a  protracted  residence  in  the  mother  country,  we  heard 
so  much  derogatory  of  American  courts,  of  the  practical  denial  of 
justice  in  them  that  we  formed  a  high  opinion,  indeed,  of  what 
was  always  held   up  to   our   admiration   in  contrast  thereuith — 


Il8  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

namely,  the  British  tribunal.  It  was  a  common  thing  to  hear 
American  courts  spoken  of  as  if  such  a  thing  as  justice  was  alto- 
gether unknown  to  them.  Returned  cockney  tourists,  big  with 
travelers'  stories  and  virtuous  indignation,  declared  that  m  the 
United  States,  more  particularly  in  New  York,  it  was  not  only  the 
common,  but  the  right  thing,  to  bribe  judge  and  jury,  and  to 
suborn  witnesses.  Shocking  accounts  of  James  Fisk's  connection 
with  the  Erie  railroad  swindles  were  related,  and  of  the  manner  in 
which  he  was  encouraged  and  protected  in  them  by  the  New  York 
courts.  With  agreeable  merriment,  the  Tammany  ring  robberies 
of  the  city  treasury,  New  York,  and  the  "brilliant  career"  of  Boss 
Tweed  were  enlarged  upon,  and  also  the  operations  of  Jay  Gould, 
James  McHenry  and  other  railroad  "financiers,"  as  well  as  the 
"eccentricities"  of  Gen.  Belknap  and  the  whisky  rings.  All  the 
facts  were  given  with  an  extraordinary  amount  ot  fiction  until  the 
whole  affair  seemed  very  much  like  "Yankee  Doodle,"  with  vari- 
ations. The  substance  of  all  these  horrible  narratives  was  that 
there  was  a  total  denial  of  justice  in  American  courts,  a  collusion 
between  judge,  jury,  witnesses,  lawyers  and  suitors  for  the  purpose 
of  robbing  litigants  and  enriching  themselves  on  the  spoils.  Bri- 
gandage in  Spain  and  Italy  was  represented  as  a  flea  bite  in  com- 
parison with  the  luxury  of  going  to  laAv  in  America.  A  suitor 
when  entering  a  New  York  court  was  said  to  take  leave  of  hope  as 
Dante  represented  was  the  case  with  the  lost  soul  when  entering 
the  infernal  region.  So  much  in  this  spirit,  vein  and  humor  had 
been  said  in  our  presence,  if  not  addressed  to  us — when  addressed 
to  us,  of  course,  always  in  the  politest  manner — by  our  mellifluous 
and  self  satisfied  British  cousins,  and  always  in  contrast  with  what 
our  modest  relatives  asserted  was  the  unsullied  purity  of  their  own 
bench  and  bar,  that  we  confess  we  approached  the  portals  of 
one  of  England's  principal  courts  with  a  respect  much  akin  to 
reverence. 

Years  have  since  passed  away  and  a  long  residence  in  Britain 
satisfies  us  that  there  was  no  occasion  for  emotion  on  approaching 
the  courts  of  VV^estminster  ;  that  in  fact,  justice  is  about  as  indiff- 
erently administered  in  that  venerable  pile,  as  in  our  own  much 
abused  tribunals.  Probably  no  where  in  the  world  is  such  high 
flown  nonsense  talked  about  justice  asin  England,  and  probauly 
nowhere  is  it  more  diflacult  to  obtain  substantial,  cheap,  immediate 
redress  for  wrong  ar  injury.  The  truth  is  there  can  hardly  be  said 
to  be  such  a  thing  as  a  well  defined  and  understood  law  governing 
any  case.  Shelves  groan  with  books  of  precedents,  but  these  con- 
flict as  often  as  they  agree.  Miles  of  statutes  have  been  enacted, 
but  one  half  of  them  contradict  the  other  half  Hundreds  of  thous- 
ands of  subtle  and  acute  intellects  have  thought  out  "cases,"  but 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENXES.  1 19 

each  is  designed  to  upset  some  case  which  preceded  it.  The  re- 
sult is  that  instead  of  an  easily  understood,  clear,  comprehensive 
code  of  laws,  the  English  are  burdened  with  a  veritable  labyrinth 
of  obsolete  phrases  and  still  more  obsolete  ideas,  among  which 
justice  is  eternally  losing  her  way.  No  man  can  hope  to  do  more 
than  master  certain  parts  of  this  inchoate  and  useless  jargon,  and 
so  from  age  to  age  the  abuse  grows  larger  and  larger,  the  courts 
become  more  and  more  expensive,  and  suits  of  all  kinds  more 
costly,  more  hazardous  and  niore  unsatisfactory  when  they  are 
concluded.  As  laws  are  made  by  lawyers,  it  is  difficult  to  under- 
sltand  where  reform  is  to  come  from.  It  is  this  which  really  bars 
the  way  to  judicial  reform,  either  partial  or  extensive.  But  until 
there  is  reform  in  these  matters  and  English  justice  becomes  a  little 
more  just,  and  bears  a  less  resemblance  to  trickery  it  behooves 
Englishmen  to  cultivate  more  modesty  in  their  comments  upon 
what  they  term  the  shortcgmings  of  the  American  system  What- 
ever bold  front  John  Bull  may  show  to  the  "intelligent  foreigner" 
in  favor  of  the  stability  of  all  British  institutions,  public  opinion  in 
Eng'and  is  ripe  for  a  change  not  only  in  the  land  laws,  but  in  the 
entire  system  of  laws,  both  municipal  and  constitutional.  A  few 
year's  residence  in  the  country  satished  us  on  this  point  — 
There  is  not  an  intelligent  man  oi  business  in  England  who  has 
ever  been  engaged  in  legal  transactions,  who  does  not  know  to 
his  cost  the  petty  pieces  of  legerdemain  by  which  solicitors,  for 
example,  divide  with  accountants  every  divisible  fragment  of  a 
bankrupt's  estate,  leaving  the  unfortunate  creditor  in  payment  of 
his  debts,  a  lithographic  copy  of  the  accounts,  and  the  memory  of 
a  swindle.  While  the  law  makers  are  selected  from  the  class  who 
themselves  fatten  on  the  law,  who  can  expect  they  will  permit, 
much  less  foster,  any  measure  which  they  fear  will  curtail  their  own 
incomes.  This  much  we  venture  to  remark  on  this  important 
subject — some  of  it  was  applicable  a  few  years  since  to  our  own 
country— and  without  intending  to  cast  wholesale  censure  and 
accusations  of  fraud  and  folly  against  a  whole  body  of  men.  Yet 
we  repeat  that  it  is  not  going  too  far  to  assert  that  lawyers  favor 
the  present  obscurity  of  the  law,  and  will  always  exert  the  whole 
of  their  vast  influence  to  keep  it  involved.  The  means  of  their 
living  they  imagine  is  inextripably  associated  with  its  inextricable- 
ness.  To  simplify  statutes  and  make  criminal  and  civil  offences 
less  the  jungle  they  now  are,  would  be  in  their  opinion  to  make 
lawyers  a  luxury  instead  of  a  necessity.  And  for  this  reason,  if 
for  no  other,  the  profession  in  England  has  always  been  found  vo- 
ting against  reform  and  impeding  judicial  progress.  It  is  much  to 
be  regretted  that  the  prejudice  against  everything  American  is  so 
great  that  they  do  not  try  our  experiment   of  codifying  and   sira- 


I20  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 

plifying  the  laws,  the  pleadings  and  all  the  procedures  i){  the 
courts.  Such  a  course  has  not  been  found  in  the  United  States  to 
materially  affect  the  profits  of  the  profession  to  the  honest  practi- 
tioner. On  the  contrary,  nowhere  is  it  better  understood  that  the 
man  who  acts  as  his  own  counsel  has  a  fool  for  his  client. 

The  English  prejudice  against  everythin|2^  American,  we  must 
say  eyi  passant,  has  been  recently  illustrated  in  a  clumsy  way  by 
the  Duke  of  Somerset,  (to  whom  we  introduced  our  reader  in  the 
sixth  chapter  as  an  oppressor  of  his  tenantry,)  in  a  work  published 
last  year  by  "his  grace,"  entitled  "Monarchy  and  Democracy. ' 
Monarchy  in  England  he  considers  lobe  as  good  as  dead  already, 
although  he  thinks  that  there  is  danger  of  its  being  galvanized 
into  a  sort  of  life  by  the  reckless  action  of  those  people  who  sup- 
port Lord  Beaconsfield  in  his  efforts  to  exalt  the  Crown.  To  that 
extent  he  is  right,  except  that  he  confounds  with  the  English  na- 
tion the  electors  who  gave  I^ord  Beaconsfield  a  majority  in  Par- 
liament ;  in  all  the  rest  of  his  book  he  is  altogether  wrong.  The 
twaddle  of  this  aged  driveler  is  in  curious  contrast  with  John 
Bright's  recent  speech  at  Birmingham.  Mr.  Bright  showed  that 
England  had  progressed  wonderfully  during  the  past  50  years 
through  the  growth  of  popular  power  and  the  gradual  overthrow 
of  political  abuses.  The  Duke  of  Somerset  thinks  England  has 
been  going  down  hill  during  the  past  50  years,  just  because  so 
many  political  abuses  have  been  overthrown.  He  looks  back 
almost  with  tearful  eyes  on  the  state  of  things  existing  before  the 
Reform  act  of  1832  was  passed,  the  time  when  as  he  says  "the 
aristocratic  patron,  the  jobbing  borough-monj^er,  the  self  elected 
corporation,  the  venal  freeman,  Jand  the  drunken  pot  walloper, 
nominated  a  considerable  proportion  of  the  House  of  Commons  !" 
That  was  the  golden  age  of  England,  he  says,  when  the  "glorious 
British  constitution"  was  in  its  most  glorious  condition.  True  he 
would  have  preferred  a  rule  of  "aristocratic  patrons"  alone,  without 
the  drunken  pot  wallopers  and  their  allies;  but  as  they  were  part 
and  parcel  of  the  same  system  he  reverences  them  all.  Will  it  be 
believed  that  in  this  year  of  grace  1880,  a  duke,  who  was  once  a 
cabinet  minister,  would  have  the  effrontery  to  say  this  to  the  en- 
lightened, liberty  loving  people  of  England,  among  whom  Repub- 
lican sentiments  are  growing  daily  ?  Yet  so  it  is.  The  Bourbons 
learn  nothing  and  forget  nothing.  The  Duke  devotes  many  chap- 
ters to  sneering  at  and  slandering  all  reforms  and  all  reformers. — 
Frankness  about  the  working  classes,  \.\\^  prolttariat  as  he  calls 
them,  is  impossible  with  him.  He  writes  thus  :  "In  all  accumula- 
tions of  animal  matter  there  is  an  immediate  tendency  to  ferment, 
and  a  crowd  of  human  beings  is  especially  liable  to  effervcscnicey 
Here  is  a  noble   duke   who   compares  the  people  of  England  to 


i 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENSES.  121 

nothing  better  than  putrifying  "animal  matter,"  and  yet  he  is  not 
only  tolerated,  but  by  a  certain  class  is  reverenced.  In  looking^  back 
upon  the  history  of  England  we  can  find  nothing  good  within  a  half 
century  which  has  come  from  the  Tory  party  of  which  the  Duke  is 
one  of  the  leaders.  The  history  of  Tories  is  a  struggle  to  preserve  the 
status  qjio  of  class  privilege  and  popular  ignorance  and  subjection. 
Toryism  is  intense  in  proportion  to  the  injustice  or  inequality  of 
which  it  is  the  offspring.  It  contains  many  stupid  people,  no  doubt, 
whose  interest  is  more  imaginary  than  real,  but  as  a  whole  it  is  the 
party  of  privilege,  and  as  such,  hostile  to  change,  however  salutary  it 
may  appear  to  the  philanthropist.  There  will  always  be  tories,  we 
fear,  in  England  and  in  every  country,  for  to  abolish  them  would  be 
to  abolish  selfishness  and  stupidity.  To  get  rid  of  them  would  be 
to  renovate  the  mind  and  conscience  of  mankmd. 

His  grace  tnices  all  the  tendency  to  change  in  England  to  the 
example  of  America  and  consequently  he  hates  America  and  ev- 
erything American. 

This  aged  fribbler  belongs  evidently  to  that  old  nobility  which 
is  more  venerable  than  valuable,  and  his  friends,  if  friends  such  a 
man  can  have,  will  regret  the  closing  years  of  his  life  in  acts  of 
charity  and  repentance,  rather  than  in  an  exhibition  of  his  narrow- 
political  views  and  his  scoffing  infidelity.  Among  the  hideous 
spectacles  of  his  declining  years  has  been  his  malevolent  attacks 
on  Christianity.  Nothing  more  is  needed  to  make  him  appear 
odious.  Americans  can  afford  to  let  them  pass  in  contempt,  firm, 
as  every  true  born  American  is,  in  a  fervent  belief  in  the  principle 
of  human  solidarity,  and  in  the  ultimate  reign  of  Democracy  and 
fraternity  the  world  over. 

Let  us  get  back  to  a  more  pleasing  and  reputable  subject  by  re- 
joining our  reader,  whom  we  have  left  so  long  standing  in  West- 
minster hall  in  front  of  an  imposing  looking  door,  which  interpos- 
ses  between  the  outside  world  and  the  dignified  body  of  a  British 
Court.  Mounting  a  few  steps  and  pushing  open  two  doors,  one 
within  the  other,  and  which  move  smoothly  and  noiselessly  on 
their  hinges,  we  find  ourselves  in  the  presence  of — an  old  woman, 
sitting  at  an  apple  stall,  supplemented  with  a  collection  of  stale 
ginger  bread  and  cheap  lollipops,  and  close  by  the  side  of  a  roar- 
ing fire.  This  is  the  lobby  of  the  Court  of  the  Queen's  Bench, 
and  the  huge  fire  is  intended  to  heat  the  court  room,  which  it 
does  by  a  system  of  flues.  The  old  woman  who  does  not  object 
to  the  temj^erature  of  Madeira,  with  her  solitary  apple  and  beer 
stall,  is  all  that  is  left  of  the  famous  array  of  shops  which  once 
graced  Westminster  Hall,  constituting  its  chief  attraction  and 
making  it  a  fashionable  promenade.  The  Court  of  Queen's  Bench 
is  so  called  from  the  ancient  custom  of  holding  courts   before    the 


122  RAMBLING     REMINISCENSES. 

monarch  in  person,  and  the  writs  of  sunin)ons  still  run  in  the  an- 
cient formula,  citing  the  litigant  parlies  to  appear  before  "ourselves 
at  Westminster." 

Leaving  the  roaring  fire  and  the  old  woman  in  possession  of  the 
lobby  now  at  a  heat  of,  we  imagine,  at  least  loo  Fahr..  we  passed 
through  another  door  and  were  at  once  in  the  presence  of  the 
court.  The  chamber  is  some  forty  feet  square  and  as  many  in 
height.  It  is  dimly  lighted  from  a  domed  circular  lantern  in  the  roof. 
Under  a  carved  canopy  in  front  of  the  royal  arms,  raised  upon  a 
kind  of  dias,  sit  four  yellow-tanned,  mummy  like  objects,  their 
heads  enveloped  in  immense  gray  wings,  amplified  by  two  side 
appendages  that  rest  upon  the  shoulders.  Their  bodies  were  cov- 
ered with  scarlet  gowns,  redundant  in  material  and  disposed  in 
ample  folds  and  broidered  with  ermine  tippets  and  cuffs.  Though 
the  dress  is  barbarous,  it  is  imposing,  and  in  a  degree  dignified, 
and  seems  to  verify  Shakespear's  acute  remark,  "through  tattered 
clothes  small  voices  do  appear,  robes  and  furred  gowns  hide  all." 
Below  the  judges  sat  on  benches  behind  a  long  table  covered  with 
green  baize,  the  registers  and  masters  of  the  Court,  and  below 
these  the  lawyers  engaged  in  the  case  before  the  Court ;  below 
these  again  the  bar,  opposite  to  and  facing  the  judges.  The  heads 
of  all  covered  with  ^rey  wigs  which  brought  to  o  ir  mind  the  ex- 
clamation of  one  wholo\'ed  them  not,  "Oh,  men,  with  heads  cloth- 
ed in  horse  hair  and  effrontery."  The  bodies  of  all  these  men  of 
the  law  were  enveloped  in  flowing  black  gowns,  their  feet  cased  in 
shining  patent  leather  pumps  with  silver  buckles,  and  from  their 
breasts  depended  a  couple  of. clerical  looking  bands  of  the  finest 
cambric.  A  violet  colored  bag  crammed  to  bursting  was  near 
each  one,  and  a  bundle  of  parchments  tied  with  red  tape.  These 
learned  gentlemen  are  the  incarnation  of  legal  wisdom  and  expe- 
rience ;  the  experts  who  handle  the  machinery  of  the  law  and 
expedite  or  frustrate  as  the  case  may  be,  the  decrees  of  even 
handed  justice.  Below  them,  in  a  kind  of  pit.  are  the  clients,  wit- 
nesses and  other  interested  parties.  Behind  these  there  are  sev- 
eral consecutive  rows  of  seats,  filled  with  attorneys,  barristers  and 
the  bar  generally,  and  behind  these,  rows  of  benches  rise,  one 
above  another,  on  which  the  public  find  seats.  These,  whenever 
an  interesting  case  is  before  the  Court,  are  filled  to  overflowing.-— 
Notwithstanding  the  large  crowd,  the  utmost  quietness — the  near- 
est possible  approach  tosilence — prevails.  The  slightest  noise  or 
disturbance,  a  hum  of  voices,  or  a  shuftling  ol  feet,  is  quelled  in  a 
moment,  by  an  admonitory  "hush-sh — sh,"  which  passing  around 
subsides  into  stillness.  These  disturbances  rarely  arise  with  the 
spectators,  but  generally  originate  with  the  geatlemeo  iu  wigs  and 
g^owns. 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENXES.  1 23 

Upon  the  occasion  of  our  visit,  the  case  in  progress  was  on  a 
motion  for  a  new  trial  in  a  case  of  libel  and  seemed  to  create  unu- 
sual interest  in  spectators  and  professionals  The  counsel  for  the 
plaintiff,  who  interlarded  every  period  with  "my  lud"  and  "yer  lud  • 
ship"' was  zealously  endeavoring-  to  impress  the  bench  with  a  sense 
of  the  profound  injury  his  client  had  received  from  the  iibeler. — 
But  the  chief  was  not  very  penetrable  to  the  counsel's  arguments 
—  seemed  to  understand  just  what  was  pertinent  to  the  case  and 
how  much  to  credit  to  bunkmn.  He  interrupted  the  "learned  coun- 
sel" as  his  lordship  styled  him,  with  much  courtesy,  in  the  middle 
of  a  rather  monotonous  piece  of  legal  rhetoric  and  questioned 
him  as  to  certain  admissions  which  the  plaintiff  had  made  to  one 
of  his  own  witnesses.  These  cannot  be  denied  and  they  constitute 
in  his  lordship's  opinion,  a  justification  of  the. terms  complained  of 
as  libelous  ;  and  in  two  or  three  words  the  rule  nisi  for  a  new  trial 
was  refused.  The  counsel's  unexhausted  resources  of  wind  were 
choked  down  for  another  occasion.  The  disconcerted  counsel,  his 
chagrin  softened  by  the  consideration  of  the  judge,  who  interlard- 
ed every  period  with  "my  learned  friend,"  bagged  his  papers  and 
disappeared,  his  face  flushed  and  his  wig  all  awry,  while  the  next 
case  was  called. 

As  the  learned  counsel  retired  there  was  no  demonstration  on 
part  either  of  the  bar  or  spectators.  The  decision  was  received 
as  a  decree  of  fate  which  must  be  submitted  to  in  silence.  The 
slightest  demonstration  of  either  approbation  or  censure  would 
have  been  instantly  checked  by  the  court  officials.  This  singular 
gravity  on  part  of  the  spectators  was  somethirrg  for  which  we  were 
hardly  prepared.  Dr.  Shaw,  however,  explained  that  they  were 
for  the  most  part  old  stagers  at  the  law,  who  had  in  times  past  lost 
and  won  many  a  cause.  The  destiny  of  many  had  thus  been  de- 
cided for  life,  and  from  having  long  lived  m  the  excitement  of  the 
courts,  they  could  not  live  without  it.  Besides  being  always  within 
convenient  reach  of  the  officer  they  served  on  many  juries  and  thus 
picked  up  an  honest  penny  and  ?»  poor  living.  There  are  not  a  few 
men  of  this  kind,  who  without  the  slightest  interest  in  any  cause  to  be 
tried,  are  as  punctual  in  their  attendance  as  the  judges,  and  who 
are  never  known  to  be  absent  during  a  single  day  or  single  hour 
while  the  court  is  open,  "I  have  been  a  guide,  showing  people 
over  the  Parliament 'ouse,  'all,  and  habby  thirty  years,"  said  a  dirt}'' 
stranger  who  held  out  to  us  a  dirty  paper,  containing  his  testimo- 
nials of  character  and  efficiency  as  a  guide,  and  who  essayed  to 
scrape  acquaintance  with  inveterate  politeness  of  language  and  un- 
assailable composure  of  manner  on  the  prospect  of  being  employed 
as  a  guide,  "and  'ave  never  seen  the  Judge  happear  without  Hold 
Timmy  Smith  hand  Freddy  Biitler.     People  do  say  Timmy  hua- 


124  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

derstands  more  law  'an  hany  of  the  bar  and  that  'is  Lordship  'ave 
been  known  to  hask  'is  opinion  on  a  knotty  pint.'' 

The  interesting  manner,  we  mav  remark  parenthetically,  in  which 
this  cockney  dropped  his  h's  reminds  us  of  an  amusing  anecdote 
or  two  in  illustrating  this  inveterate  habit  with  a  certain  class  of 
English  people,  A  student  at  one  of  the  two  British  military 
academies  had  copied  a  drawing  of  a  scene  in  Venice,  and  in  copy- 
ing the  title  had  spelled  the  name  of  the  city  Vemiice.  The  draw- 
ing master  put  his  pen  through  the  surperfluous  letter,  observing, 
"Don't  you  know,  sir,  that  there  is  but  one  hen  in  Venice?"  on 
which  the  youth  burst  out  laughing.  Being  asked  what  he  was 
laughing  about,  he  replied  he  was  thinking  how  uncommonly  scarce 
e^i>s  7nust  be  there.  The  master,  in  wrath,  reported  him  to  the 
Colonel  in  command,  a  Scotchman.  He  hearing  the  disrespectful 
reply,  without  in  the  least  seeing  the  point  of  the  joke,  observed, 
"an  a  verra  naatural  observation  too." 

A  barber  while  operating  on  a  gentleman  during  the  cholera 
epidemic,  said,  "After  all,  the  cholera  is  in  the  hair."  "Then  '  re- 
plied the  customer,  "you  ought  to  be  very  careful  what  brushes 
you  use." 

"Oh  sir,"  replied  the  barber,  laughing,  "I  did  not  mean  the  'air 
of  the  'ed,  but  the  hair  of  the  hatmosphere." 

And  one  seasoned  cockney  tells  another,  "My  'ed  used  to  hake 
ready  to  bust" 

These  illustrations  of  a  vulgar  habit  are  not  given  solely  be- 
cause they  amuse,  but  because  it  furnishes  us  the  opportunity  to 
say  that  we  regard  the  care  of  the  English  language  as  at  all 
times  a  sacred  trust  and  most  important  privilege  of  the  upper 
classes.  Every  man  of  education  should  make  it  the  object  of 
his  increasing  concern  to  preserve  his  language  pure  and  entire, 
and  to  speak  it,  so  far  as  in  his  power,  in  all  its  beauty  and  per- 
fection. 

It  must  not  be  forgotten,  however,  that  we  are  in  the  court 
room.  In  casting  our  eyes  over  the  audience,  it  was  not  difficult 
to  distinguish  the  old  attendants  from  the  rest  of  the  listeners, 
who  were  now,  many  of  them,  for  the  first  time  in  their  lives  be- 
fore a  court.  They  are'excited  and  unable  to  settle  comfortably 
in  a  seat.  If  they  do  so  for  a  moment  they  are  up  and  off  at  a 
tangent,  as  some  sudden  thought  strikes  them.  Rushing  to  the 
apple  stall  to  cool  their  fever  with  gin  and  a  temperature  of 
ioo°,  or  to  write  a  note  at  one  of  the  desks  in  the  rear,  of  which 
there  are  always  several  available,  and  thus  to  inform  their  coun- 
sel of  some  vital  point  forgotten  till  that  moment,  or  perhaps  never 
before  imagined. 

From  the  Court  of  Queen's  bench   we   returned   through    the 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  I25 

lobby  to  Westminister  Hall  and  entered  the  second  side-door 
which  introduced  us  to  the  Court  of  Exchequer.  This  Court  ex- 
ercises functions  extra  judicial,  and  keeps  up  the  observance  of 
certain  traditionary  customs  and  rites,  as  for  example  it  re^s^ulates 
the  election  of  sheriffs.  As  the  English  mode  of  electing-  the 
sheriffs  is  peculiar  and  unlike  anything  American  it  will  not  be 
uninteresting  to  give  a  brief  account  of  it.  Annually  on  the  day 
after  St.  Martin's,  November  12,  a  Privy  Council  is  held  to  re- 
ceive the  report  of  the  Judges,  of  the  persons  eligible  in  the  sev- 
eral counties  to  serve  as  sheriff.  The  chancellor  of  the  Exchequer 
sits  upon  the  bench  arrayed  in  a  figured  silk  gown,  trimmed  with 
gold,  (this  is  the  only  occasion  on  which  the  chancellor  of  the 
Exchequer  takes  his  seat  in  this  court).  Next  are  the  members 
of  the  Privy  Council,  the  Lord  Chancellor  and  Judges  of  the 
Queen's  Bench  and  Common  Pleas;  below  sit  the  Judges  and 
chief  Baron  of  Exchequer,  and  on  the  left  the  remembrancer  or 
recorder  of  the  Court.  The  names  of  three  persons  in  each 
county  who  are  eligible  for  sheriff  are  reported  by  the  judges, 
when  excuses  for  exemption  may  be  pleaded.  When  the  Privy 
Council  have  considered  the  list,  the  names  are  finally  approved 
by  the  Queen  in  Privy  Council,  which  is  done  by  Her  Majesty 
pricking  through  the  names  approved  on  a  sheet  of  paper  called 
the  Sheriff's  Roll.  There  is  an  exception  to  this  mode  in  case  of 
the  sheriffs  of  London  and  Middlesex,  who  are  chosen  by  the 
Livery,  but  are  presented  on  the  morrow  of  the  Feast  of  St. 
Michael,  in  the  Court  of  Exchequer,  accompanied  by  the  Lord 
Mayor  and  Alderman,  when  the  Recorder  introduces  the  sheriffs 
and  details  their  family  history,  and  the  Cursitor  Baron,  an  officer 
of  the  Court  who  attends  at  Westminster  to  open  the  Court  prior 
to  the  commencement  of  each  of  the  fixed  terms,  and  on  the  last 
day  after  each  term  to  close  the  court,  signifies  the  sovereign's 
approval ;  the  writs  and  appearances  are  read,  recorded  and 
filed,  and  the  sheriffs  and  senior  under  sheriffs  take  the  oaths,  and 
the  late  sheriffs  present  their  accounts.  At  this  point  the  crier  of 
the  court  makes  proclamation  for  one  who  does  homage  for  the 
Sheriffs  of  London,  to  "stand  forth  and  do  his  duty;"  then  the 
senior  alderman  below  the  chair  rises,  the  usher  of  the  court 
hands  him  a  bill-book,  and  holds  in  both  hands  a  small  bundle  of 
sticks,  which  the  alderman  cuts  asunder,  and  then  cuts  another 
bundle  with  a  hatchet.  Similar  proclamation  is  then  made  for  the 
Sheriffof  Middlesex,  when  the  alderman  counts  six  horseshoes 
lying  upon  the  table,  and  sixty-one  hob  nails  handed  in  tray,  and 
the  members  are  declared  twice.  By  the  first  service  the  alder- 
man does  service  for  the  tenants  of  a  manor  in  Shropshire,  the 
chopping  of  sticks  betokening  the  customs  of  the  tenants  supply- 


126  RAMBLING     REMINISCENXES. 

intr  their  lord  with  fuel.  The  counting  of  the  horse  shoes  and 
nails  is  another  suit  and  service  of  the  owners  of  a  forge  in  St. 
Clement  Danes  strand,  which  formerly  belonged  to  the  city,  but 
no  longer  exists,  while  as  to  the  manor  in  Shropshire,  even  a  cen- 
tury ago  no  one  knew  where  the  lands  were  situated,  nor  did  the 
city  receive  any  rents  or  profits  from  them. 

Annually  on  the  9th  of  November  the  Lord  Mayor's  procession 
takes  place  from  the  city  to  Westminster.  It  is  conducted  at  the 
present  day  with  all  the  barbaric  splendor  of  early  days,  interferes 
with  th-e  business  of  the.  Metropolis  and  excites  the  ridicule  of 
foreigners,  but  the  English  cling  to  it  with  a  kind  of  childish  de- 
light. On  the  arrival  of  the  pageant  at  Westminister,  the  Court 
of  Exchequer  administers  the  oath  to  the  new  Lord  Mayor.  At 
the  same  time  the  late  Lord  Mayor  renders  his  accounts,  and  the 
Rememljrancer  invites  the  Barons  to  the  banquet  at  Guildhall. 
This  annual  feast,  where  all  that  can  delight  the  gastronomist  is 
displayed  in  bounteous  profusion,  is  one  of  the  "institutions"  of 
old  England.  It  is  attended  by  the  Cabinet  ministers,  prominent 
'M.  P's.  and  other  officials,  the  foreign  Ambassadors  and  distin- 
guished strangers.  All  the  circumstances  connected 'Vvith  this 
repast  are  too  well  known  and  are  moreover  not  of  sufficient  im- 
portance to  bear  being  communicated  to  the  reader. 

It  may  not  be  uninteresting  to  add  to  what  we  have  said  a  brief 
sketch  of  the  Lord  Mayor  holding  office  on  our  arrival  in  London 
and  the  munificent  banquets  which  he  gave  during  his  year  of 
civil  mayoralty. 

An  invitation  to  attend  one  of  these  feasts  led  to  our  acquaint- 
ance with  Mr.  W^m.  Cubitt,  M.  P.,  and  we  have  rarely  known  a 
better  specimen  of  a  straightforward,  blunt,  honest  man,  whose 
true  merits  rest  on  performances.  Mr.  Cubitt  belongs  to  that  class 
of  successful  men,  so  esteemed  the  world  over  by  right  minded 
people,  who  have  been  the  chief  architects  of  their  own  fortunes 
and  fame.  He  has  had  none  of  the  advantages  which  attach  lo 
birth  and  aristocratic  friends  or  to  fortune,  but  has  carved  out  his 
passage  to  wealth  and  distinction  by  his  own  skill,  iiulustry  and 
enterprise.  Mr.  Cubitt's  career  is  a  refutation  of  the  popular  er- 
ror somewhat  prevalent  in  this  country,  that  no  one  can  rise  in 
England  without  the  prestige  of  rank  and  wealth.  He  issj)ruiu^r, 
like  Mr.  Gladstone  and  very  many  others  now  cniiiunt,  liom  the 
middle  class,  and  was  broui^ht  up  to  business.  \\y  persevering 
industry,  good  sense  and  the  pr.ictice  of  those  lu>niely  and  truly 
domestic  virtues  comprehended  in  "Early  to  bed  and  ear]\  to 
rise,  make  a  man  healthy,  wealthy  and  wise,"  has  risen  Mep  by 
step  to  occupy  a  distinguished  position  in  station  and  society.  The 
borough  of  Andover  first  honored  itself  by  honoring    Mr.  Cubitt 


RAMBLING     REMINISCEJJJCESa  -    -^  1 27 

with  a  seat  in  Parliament  in  the  year  i847lkwd  this,  too,  in  prefer- 
ence to  a  gentleman  enjoying  the  honors  c!i^a|T^^cutcheon  and  the 
claims  of  an  aristocratic  birth.  It  was  a  fin©;J^ute  to  his  moral 
worth,  for  much  as  he  is   distinguished    for    h'ls-^sotind-  sense^a-ird 

good  judgment,  he  is  loved  more  tor  his    benevolence, his   virtue 

and  honesty.  "It  is  not,"  we  may  add  in  the  words  of  Sir  Walter 
Raleigh,  "tor  their  wisdom  that  we  love  the  wisest,  nor  in  their  wit 
that  we  love  the  wittiest,  but  for  their  moral  worth  ;  the  other  qual- 
ities only  make  us  proud  of  their  acquaintance."  Though  pos- 
sessing no  parts  of  an  orator,  by  his  industry  and  application  to 
his  legislative  duties,' his  zealous  advocacy  of  conservative  princi- 
ples and  his  suavity  of  manner,  he  soon  gained  a  strong  position 
in  the  House.  To  his  suavity  he  adds  a  felicitous  good  humor, 
an  even  temperament  and  happy  disposition  on  all  occasions.  He 
has  done  since  entering  into  political  life  what  so.  few  public  men 
do,  established  a  character  for  honesty  and  sincerity.  Thus  though 
possessing  few  of  those  shining  qualities,  which  distinguish  many 
of  his  colleagues,  he  possesses  more  weight  and  influence. 

He  has  gained  his  position,  not  by  the  length  of  his  speeches, 
has  rarely  been  seen  "on  his  legs,"  but  by  the  silent,  unwearied 
energy  with  which  he  watches  and  takes  part  in  the  progress  of 
legislation.  Though  chosen  by  the  particular  district  of  Andover, 
he  has  always  felt  since  the  election  that  he  served  for  the  whole 
realm,  that  he  did  not  enter  the  House  for  the  specific  duty  of 
representing  Andover,  but  for  the  general  purpose  of  serving  the 
public,  that  it  was  not  for  the  single  advantage  of  his  own  district, 
l)ut  for  that  of  his  country. 

During  numerous  conversations  we  had  the  pleasure  to  hold 
with  Mr.  Cubitt,  about  the  time  and  subsequent  to  the  occasion  of 
his  Guildhall  Hall  banquet,  he  spoke  to  us  of  the  secret  of  his  suc- 
cess in  life.  The  substance  of  what  he  said  was  that  his  rule  had 
been  deliberately  to  consider,  before  he  commenced,  whether  a 
thing  was  practicable.  If  not  practicable  he  did  not  attempt  it. — 
If  it  was  practicable  he  would  accomplish  it,  if  he  gave  sufficient 
pains  to  it,  and  having  begun  he  never  stopped  till  the  thing  was 
done. 

Mr.  Cubitt  is  now  in  his  seventieth  year,  but  in  full  possession  of 
his  health  and  faculties-  Is  of  medium  height,  pleasing  counte- 
nance and  unaffected  demeanor  and  more  like  a  quiet  country  gen- 
tleman than  an  old  politician  long  accustomed  to  public  life  and 
the  blandishments  of  West-end  society.  A  finer  specimen  of  hon- 
est John  Bull  could  not  be  found.  Much  as  he  has  accomplished, 
evidently  he  is  a  man  capable  of  greater  things  than  he  has  per- 
formed. There  are  many  such  men  in  the  world.  They  seem 
sent  among  men  with  bills  of  credit,  which  from  a  sense   of  their 


128  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

own  Strength  ;  the  plentitude  of  their  own  resources,  a  conscious- 
ness of  their  ability  to  secure  when  they  please  to  put  forth  their 
power  ;  they  seldom  draw  to  their  full  extent.  Within  six  months 
of  the  period  when  these  lines  were  written,  we  went  to  Sir  Wil- 
liam's country  seat  near  Dorking,  one  of  the  most  elegant  homes 
of  Old  England,  and  amidst  scenery  unsurpassed  for  its  beauty. 
And,  alas,  that  it  must  be  said,  within  a  few  months  of  this  time 
the  glorious  old  man  sunk  into  an  honored  grave. 

Returning  from  our  visit  to  Mr.  Cubitt's,  we  passed  near  Craw- 
ley and  entered  the  village  churchyard  of  Barstow. 

During  the  short  time  we  remained  here  we  copied  the  follow- 
ing quaint  and  curious  inscriptions  from  the  tombs.  They  are  now 
giverl  verbatiin  et  literatim,  the  grammar,  rhyme  and  reason,  cap- 
ital letters,  punctuation  and  orthography,  just  as  we  found  them. 

I- 
All  human  things  are  subject  to  decay. 
And  when  death  summons  mortals  must  obey. 

II. 
Of  all  things  Certain  unto  our  Eye, 
Nothing's  more  Certain  than  we're  born  to  die. 

III. 
Let  angels  guard  the  sleeping  dust,  My  soul  to  Christ  in  whom  I  trust 
And  when  I  wake  with  great  Surprise,  in  my  Saviour  hope  to  rise. 

IV. 
Spectators  here  behold  the  Earthly  grave,  from  Death's  due  debts  none  my  life 

would  save,  • 

Then  weep  not  husband  nor  my  children  dear,  I  am  not  lost,  but  only  sleeping 

here. 

V. 

We  here  doth  lie  turn'd  to  clay 
Until  the  resurrection  day, 
When  we  account  to  God  must  gire 
How  we  on  earth  our  lives  did  live. 

VI. 
Though  suddenly  from  me  my  life  was  took 
I  hope  the  Lord  has  not  my  soul  forsook, 
Therefore  dear  friends,  lament  for  me  no  more 
I  am  not  lost  but  only  gone  before. 

VII. 
I  come  into  this  world  indeed.  I  saw  it  was  in  vain, 
1  therefore  did  return  with  speed  into  my  God  again. 


I 


RAMBLING    REMINISCENSES.  I29 

VIII. 
All  you  in  strength  that  here  pass  by 
Think  on  the  Dead  that  cloth  here  lie, 
And  when  you  think  remember  that 
The  grave  you're  sure  will  be  your  lot. 

My  glass  is  run,  my  time  is  spent 

And  Christ  my  God  have  forme  sent. 

Come  trim  your  lamps  and  with  your  oil  prepare  to  go 

For  God  will  call  for  you  also. 

X. 

With  my  God  I  hope  to  rest,  and  with  my  Savior  Jesus  Christ, 

The  pains  of  Death  I  have  gone  through  and  so  I  bid  the  world  adieu. 

XI. 

Censure  not  rashly  nature  apt  to  halt 

That  man's  Onborn  that  dies  without  a  fault. 

XII. 

Sleep  on  sweet  babes  and  take  thy  rest 
And  live  with  Christ  among  the  blest. 

XIII. 
O  !  husband  dear  my  time  is  past 
My  love  remained  while  life  did  last 
Let  none  for  me  to  sorrow  take 
^  But  love  my  children  for  my  sake. 

My  body  now  is  turned  to  Dust, 
My  soul  to  Christ  in  whom  I  trust. 

XIV. 

While  on  earth  I  did  remain 
My  latter  end  was  grief  and  pain, 
God  took  me  when  it  pleased  him  best 
My  soul  in  Heaven  I  hope  to  Rest, 

XV. 

In  youthful  inscence  my  mind  was  cheerful  bent 
I  did  not  dream  of  Death,  till  Death  to  me  was  sent 
How  soon  the  thread  of  life  was  Broke  into  with  me. 
Death  may  not  seem  near  you  and  yet  be  at  your  feet 
To  meet  you  in  that  place  whare  joy  never  ends 
How  happy  I  shall  be  to  meet  there  dear  friends. 


f'y',\ 


I30  RAMBLING    REMINISCENSES. 

XVI. 
O  fatal  Death  that  could  no  longer  spare,  a  tender  wife  and  loving  mother  dear. 
Her  loss  is  great  to  those  she  left  behind,  a  sincere  Christian  and  a  friend, 
She  has  gone  awhile  before  a  debt  to  pay 
Pray  God  prepare  us  all  for  that  great  Day. 

XVII. 
When  God  cuts  off  the"  thread  of  Life 
Then  fatal  death  parts  man  and  wife. 
Therefore  my  Husband  and  children  dear, 
I  am  not  lost  but  sleeping  here. 

XVIII. 
This  world  is  a  city  full  of  crooked  streets 
Death  is  a  market  place  we  all  must  meet, 
If  life  were  merchandize,  the  Rich  could  buy 
Then  they  would  live  and  the  Poor  must  die. 

XIX. 
Here  lies  a  woman  who  lived  a  sober  life 
A  tender  mother  and  a  loving  wife 
A  good  neighbor  and  a  faithful  friend, 
And  as  she  lived  we  hope  soon  to  end 

It  is  remarkable  that  so  many  quaint  and  curious  epitaphs  should 
be  found  in  one  village  cemetery.  We  were  told  the  presiding^ 
genius  of  the  place  was  the  blacksmith.  He  must,  however,  have 
simply  been  the  imitator  of  some  preceding  genius  loci,  as  many 
of  these  memorials  showed  symptoms  of  great  age.  Leaving  the 
sacred  spot  with  many  of  Harvey's  meditations  passing  through 
our  mind  almost  as  if  they  were  our  own,  we  stepped  into  a  rail- 
way carriage  and  were  soon  again  under  the  smoke  of  London. 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  I-;i 


CHAPTER  XII. 

SANITARY   SCIENCE — HOUSE  AND   TOWN  SEWERAGE— ITS  INFLU- 
ENCE ON  HEALTH  AND  LONGEVITY. 

The  present  era  is  remarkable  for  the  commencement  of  what 
may  be  called  a  new  science,  which  has  for  its  direct  object  the 
extension,  so  far  as  means  may  avail,  of  the  averatre  duration  of 
human  life.  It  would  be  culpable  ingratitude  not  to  hail  with  san- 
guine hope  the  energy  of  the  sanitary  movement  which  now  per- 
vades the  land.  It  will  not,  perhaps,  be  untilone  or  two  genera- 
tions, that  much  impression  will  be  made  by  its  agency  on  exist- 
•  ing  evils.  But  posterity  will,  probably,  see  the  public  mind  sub- 
mitting to  be  enlightened  and  the  public  will  directed  by  men  who 
have  rendered  themselves  competent  to  the  office.  The  result 
will,  in  all  likelihood,  be  that,  with  God's  blessing  on  the  work,  an 
incalculable  amount  of  physical  suffering  will  be  averted,  and  a 
large  accession  of  good  in  all  senses  of  the  word,  obtained. 
Each  successive  generation  will  occupy  a  position,  as  regards 
health,  beyond  that  of  its  predecessor,  and  will  leave  to  its  child- 
ren a  still  greater  immunity  from  the  bodily  ills  that  afflict  human- 
ity. 

The  health  of  communities  may  be  improved,  without  their  hav- 
ing any  intelligent  apprehension  of  the  reasonableness  of  the 
means  employed  ;  cities  and  towns  may  be  drained  and  ventilated, 
and  both  rich  and  poor  participate  in  the  advantage  without  one 
of  the  inhabitants  understanding  how  the  benefits  were  brought 
about.  And  on  the  other  hand,  influences  adverse  to  health,  may 
rise  unsuspected  from  the  soil,  or  exist  in  the  water  drawn  from 
the  bowels  of  the  earth,  and  scatter  disease  and  death  broadca'-t 
through  the  community.  While  in  the  rural  districts  visiting  and 
sojourning  in  many  charming  looking  villages  the  general  and  de- 
plorable neglect  ot  sanitary  drainage  was  brought  prominently  to 
our  attention.  No  country  is  blest  with  a  larger  number  of  med- 
ical philosophers  than  England  and  in  the  great  cities  the  sanitary 
authorities  are  ever  on  the  alert.  Yet  in  many  of  the  towns  and 
villages  which  we  have  visited  there  is  no  sewer  system  whatever 
and  in  others  it  is  entirely  inadequate.  The  death  rate  is  conse- 
qu^ntb'  rnuch  higher  than  it  would  be  but  for  the  unnatural  con- 
diti-on  of  living  and  the  tone  of  health  in  those  who  survive  lower- 
ed to  such  a  point  that,  if  they  do  not  become  actual  charges  on 


132  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

the  public,  they  transmit  an  inheritance    of  physical    weakness   to 
their  posterity. 

Absolute  health  cannot  be  hoped  for  by  any  child  of  Adam. — 
We  suffer  for  the  sins  of  our  forefathers  and  inherit  disease  and 
the  tendencies  to  disease  which  they  incurred.  Causes  of  ill  health 
have  operated  on  the  bodily  constitution  from  birth.  It  is  not  in 
the  power  of  more  than  a  few,  to  select  the  circumstances  under 
which  they  will  live  and  to  avail  themselves  of  all  the  suggestions 
which  the  enlightened  physician  is  now  prepared  to  offer.  The 
mass  of  mankind  will  remain  subject  to  poverty.  Unhealthy  influ- 
ences surround  us  unsuspected.  The  arts  and  employments 
life  are  often  such  as  can  only  be  rendered  comparatively  uninju- 
vious.  Toil  of  mind  and  body  must  be  persisted  in,  although 
known  to  be  excessive.  Sorrow,  care  and  anxiety  must  be  endur- 
ed by  thousands,  who  are  ignorant  of  the  only  remedy  against 
them — a  living  union  to  God,  through  Christ— and  necessity  will 
continue  to  oppose  obstacles,  often  insurmountable,  to  what  the  in- 
structed judgment  knows  to  be  expedient. 

There  are  few  readers  who  have  not  been  exposed  to  one  or  the 
other  of  these  causes  of  ill-health,  and  who  will  not  therefore  read- 
ily concur,  for  the  most  part,  in  the  justness  of  these  observations. 
Nor  is  there  any  reason  why  they  should  not  be  made.  They  do 
nbt  weaken  the  force  of  the  advice,  to  strive  to  become  as  strong 
and  well  as  possible.  The  whole  of  human  life,  very  nearly,  is  a 
battle  between  good  and  evil ;  and  in  the  matter  of  health,  most  of 
us  have  to  make  the  best  of  what  we  would  rather  had  been  other 
than  it  is.  Many  will  wish  they  had  known  in  their  youth  what 
any  one  may  know  now,  who  once  sees  it  to  be  his  duty  to  try  and 
be  well.  And  many  will  wish  that  tl^eir  parents  had  been  taught 
that  their  children  had  bodies  as  well  as  minds,  which  also  needed 
to  be  educated.  But  it  is  the  rule  of  this  life,  however  numerous 
the  expectations  may  seem,  that  whatever  is  made  the  object  of  in- 
telligent pursuit,  is  more  or  less  completely  attained.  And  the 
manly,  rational  determination  to  be  well  that  we  mav  be  useful, 
will  certainly  have  its  reward.  Space  will  not  permit  us  to  enter 
into  a  description  of  the  various  organs  of  the  human  body,  and 
the  functions  to  which  they  are  subservient.  Nor  can  we  delay  to 
consider  what  individual  effort  is  required  within  the  walls  of  peo- 
ple's houses  and  in  the  regulation  of  their  habits  in  order  to  secure 
and  retain  good  health.  Common  sense  and  the  experience  of 
mankind  teach  that  personal  cleanliness,  that  the  function  of  the 
skin,  with  its  millions  of  pores,  may  not  be  impeded  ;  that  regular 
exercise,  proper  nutrition,  pure  air  and  water  are  the  conditions'on 
which  depend  good  health.  There  are  also  mental  and  moral 
causes  of  disease  and  ill  health  worthy  of  consideration,  but  it  does 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENSES.  I33 

not  belono^  to  our  phn  to  refer  more  particularly  to  them  at  this 
time.  It  is  enouf^h  for  us  to  allude  thus  generally  to  these  essen- 
tial matters.  We  shall  confine  ourselves  herein  to  a  few  reirfarks 
on  the  subject  of  sanitary  drainage,  and  the  deplorable  results 
which  follow  its  neglect. 

The  question  has  interested  the  writer  for  many  years,  and  its 
pressing  importance  was  revived  in  his  mind,  as  above  mentioned, 
by  the  almost  total  neglect  of  these  matters  in  the  lovely  villages 
and  towns  scattered  over  England  which  he  visited  at  the  period 
when  these  notes  were  being  collected. 

It  is  only  within  a  comparatively  recent  period  that  the  vital  im- 
portance of  the  subject  has  engaged  the  public  attention,  though 
the  evils  it  is  intended  to  mitigate,  or  altogether  avert,  are  as  old  as 
civilization.  The  ancients  fully  understood  the  matter  and  the 
great  men  among  the  Jews,  Greeks  and  Romans  considered  per- 
sonal cleanliness  and  the  surroundings  of  a  man's  dwelling,  wheth- 
er this  was  a  tent,  a  hut  or  a  palace,  as  of  paramount  importance. 
In  fact  in  most  Eastern  countries,  cleanliness  makes  a  part  of  their 
religion.  The  Jewish  and  Mahometan  religions  enjoin  various 
bathings,  washings  and  purifications.  No  doubt  the  washings  may 
appear  whimsical  to  some,  yet  few  things  would  tend  more  to  pre- 
vent diseases  than  a  proper  attention  to  many  of  them.  Were 
every  person,  for  example,  after  visiting  the  sick,  handling  a  dead 
body,  or  touching  anything  that  might  convey  infection,,  to  wash 
before  he  went  into  company,  or  sit  down  to  meat,  he  would  run 
less  hazard  either  of  catching  the  infection  himself,  or  of  commu- 
nicating it  to  others.  By  negligence  in  this  matter  infectious  di- 
seases are  spread  in  all  places  where  large  crowds  are  brought 
together  in  camps,  hospitals,  cities  and  towns.  The  Jews  during 
their  encampment  in  the  wilderness,  received  particular  instruc- 
tions with  respect  to  cleanliness,  "Thou  shalt  have  a  p'ace  also 
without  the  camp,  whilher  thou  shalt  go  forth  abroad.  And  thou 
sh'lt  have  a  paddle  upon  thy  weapon  ;  and  it  shall  be,  when  thou 
wilt  ease  thyself  abroad,  thou  shalt  dig  therewith,  and  shalt  turn 
back,  and  cover  that  which  cometh  Irom  thee." — Deuterouoniy  ch. 
23,  V.  12,  13. 

Pliny  says  the  common  sewers  for  the  conveyance  of  filth  and 
nastiness  from  the  city  of  Rome  were  the  greatest  of  all  the  public 
works;  and  bestows  higher  encomiums  upon  Tarquinius,  Agrippa 
and  others  who  made  and  improved  them,  than  on  those  who 
achieved  the  greatest  conquests.  And  the  Emperor  Trajan  gave 
particular  directions  to  his  proconsul  Pliny  concerning  the 
making  of  a  common  sewer  for  the  health  and  convenience  of  a 
conquered  city.  Tt  is,  indeed,  from  the  ancients  we  derive  maxims 
to  which  nothing  can  be  added.     From  an  ancient  Greek  physi- 


134  RAMBLING    REMINISCENSES. 

cian  we  get  the  cardinal  hygienic  formula,  "pure  air,  pure  water 
and  pure  soil."  It  was  a  marvel  to  ancient  travelers  on  what  a 
stupendous  scale  the  works  of  Egypt  were  constructed  to  obtain 
a  supply  of  sweet  water  from  the  Nile,  and  those  of  Babylon  to 
get  it  from  the  Tigris  and  Euphrates.  The  ruins  of  the  ancient 
aqueducts  for  supplying  Rome  with  water  fro»n  the  Sabine  and 
Albanian  hills  form  one  of  the  most  striking  features,  (exciting  the 
astonishment  of  all  intelligent  travelers,)  in  the  landscapes  of  the 
Campagna,  at  the  present  day.  The  stone  pavements  also  on 
which  the  ancient  sewers  were  bottomed  are  still  visible.  No 
wanderer  among  the  ghastly  exhumations  of  Pompeii  can  have 
failed  to  observe  the  careful  provision  made  for  securing  a  supply 
of  water,  and  must  have  viewed  with  astonishment  and  delight  the 
many  baths,  some  of  them  unburied  in  almost  perfect  condition, 
as  they  existed  2,oco  years  ago.  Nor  can  the  traces  of  the  net 
work  of  drains  which  kept  the  city  pure  have  escaped  his  atten- 
tion. 

During  the  dark  ages  when  the  forests  of  the  North  poured 
forth  their  hordes,  wave  after  wave,  in  all  the  strength  and  vigor 
of  primitive  nature,  unlettered  and  barbarous,  the  knowledge  of 
sanitary  needs  perished  from  men's  minds,  and  the  medieval  cities 
were  cursed  from  time  to  time  with  plague  and  pestilence.  During 
this  long  period  of  about  ten  centuries — from  A.  D.  476  to  1492 — 
the  death  rate  was  so  high  from  the  neglect  of  the  laws  of  health, 
that  population  increased  at  the  rate  of  something  less  than  one 
per  cent,  in  ten  years.* 

A  national  passion  for  pure  air  and  general   cleanliness   is   sup- 
posed to  have  been  revived  in  Europe  by  the  Moors,  who  invaded 
^  Spain  during  the  Middle  Ages  and  remained  there  \intil  about  the 
period  of  the  discovery  of  America. 

All  thoughtful  men,  whose  attention  has  been  directed  to  the 
subject  of  the  public  health' in  cities  and  towns  agree  as  to  the  ab- 
solute necessity  of  a  thorough  system  of  underground  drains. — 
Consequently,  in  populous  communities  like  those  of  London, 
Paris,  New  York  and  other  great  cities  enormous  sums  have  been 
expended  to  attain  this  object.  Engineers  and  architects  tell  us, 
if  common  sense  does  not,  that  the  waste  of  such  communities 
cannot  be  accommodated,  or  be  rendered  innocent  by  any  number 
of  cess  pools,  however  numerous  or  well  constructed  ;  that  a  sys- 
tem of  cess  pools  or  open  vaults  tend  to  saturate  the  soil  with  fetid 
matter.  Around  each  cess  pool,  for  a  considerable  distance,  the 
soil  is  poisoned.     "External  to  this  limit,"  says   a   high   authority 

'  *For  an  intensely  interesting  account  of  the  Epidemics  of  the  Middle    Ages, 
Ae  reader  is  referred  to  Dr.  J.  F*.  C    Hecker's  great  work 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  .135 

on  these  matters,  "the  filth  is  destroyed  by  the  action  of  the  oxy- 
gen of  the  air,  which  isag:reat  purifier.  Within  the  hmits  named 
the  animal  matter  preponderates  either  constantly,  or  at  some  pe- 
riod of  the  year.  They  may  remain  simply  disag^reeable  without 
being  dangerous,  and  may  again,  in  a  way  whose  details  have  as 
yet  escaped  investigation,  become  the  seed  bed  or  the  nursery  of 
the  infection  that  breaks  out  in  fevers  and  dysentery.  The  dan- 
ger increases  as  the  quantity  of  filth  and  the  number  of  its  recep- 
tacles increase.  To  cover  them  up  does  not  necessarily  remove 
the  evil.  The  putrid  matter  soaks  into  the  soil  and  moves  upward 
and  downward  in  it  with  the  motion  of  the  soil  water." 

It  is  a  truism  that  the  health  of  man  requires  that  he  should 
have  pure  air,  pure  water  and  clean  soil.  Common  sense  and 
practical  experience  alike  condemn  the  pollution  of  the  air  we 
breathe  or  the  water  we  drink.  And  it  has  been  well  said  that 
"we  live  or  we  die,  live  well  or  miserably,  live  our  full  term  or 
perish  prematurely,  accordingly  as  we  shall  wisely  or  otherwise 
determine."  In  other  words,  our  lives  are  short  or  long  just  in 
proportion  to  the  care  we  pay  to  the  laws  of  health.  It  is  a  mat- 
ter which  addresses  itself  to  the  builder  of  an  isolated  house  who, 
if  wise,  will  make  provision  against  allowing  the  soil  to  become 
polluted  by  the  accumulation  of  waste  which  follows  occupation. 
And  by  placing  his  kitchen,  stables,  pig  sties  and  other  outbuild- 
ings at  such  a  distance  as  to  render  any  necessary  visitation  of  the 
air  from  them  innocuous. 

If  these  country  houses  on  healthy  sites  and  in  the  vicinity  of 
running  streams  of  pure  water,  are  liable  to  become  centres  of 
disease,  by  neglect  of  cleanliness,  how  greatly  is  the  danger  in- 
creased as  population  grows  and  houses  multiply  and  are  brought 
together  in  cities  and  towns.  The  danger  is  intensified  by  the 
further  fact  that  in  a  town  the  filth  in  one  house  is  the  cause  of  di- 
sease and  death  in  others.  It  is  not  a  private,  but  a  public  ques- 
tion, a  matter  affecting  all,  in  what  state  each  individual  inhabitant 
of  a  city  or  town  keeps  his  house  or  grounds.  No  one  should  be 
allowed,  or  is,  in  a  well  regulated  town,  to  keep  upon  his  premises 
any  festering  organic  matter,  cess  pools,  pig  sties,  decaying  vege- 
tables, or  any  other  refuse  that  endangers  the  lives  of  his  neigh- 
bors. The  health  of  each  is  important  to  all  and  it  is  the  duty  of 
all  to  join  in  securing  it.  If  they  cannot  be  induced  to  do  so  by  an 
appeal  to  their  good  sense,  they  should  be  forced  to  it  by  m.unici- 
pal  regulations. 

When  the  municipal  authorities  are  so  blind  or  indifferent  as  to 
disregard  these  laws,  sooner  or  later  they  are  spoken  to  in  terrible 
language — the  language  of  disease  and  death.  It  has  been  w.sely 
ly  said  "that  pestilence  is  the  angel  wth  which   it    would    seem,  it 


136  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

has  pleased  the  Ahiiighty  to  awaken  the  human  race  to  the  duty 
of  self  preservation  ;  plagues  are  not  committing  havoc  perpetu- 
ally, but  turning  men  to  destruction  and  then  suddenly  ceasing 
that  they  may  consider.  As  the  lost  father  speaks  to  the  family 
and  the  slight  epidemic  to  the  city,  so  the  pestilence  speaks  to  the 
nation." 

In  cities  and  towns  it  is  obviously  impossible  for  works  of  gen- 
eral drainage  to  be  carried  out  by  any  than  public  authority.  In 
some  European  and  South  American  cities,  notably  in  Cadiz  and 
in  Rio  de  Janerio,  joint  stock  companies  have  been  formed  'under 
municipal  authority  lor  general  drainage.  They  are  usually  de- 
nominated "Public  Improvement  Companies,"  and  all  houses  are 
required  by  law  to  ccmmunicate  with  the  extensive  ramifications 
of  sewers  thus  opened,  and  to  pay  to  the  companies  a  certain  an- 
nual rent.  These  companies  keep  the  city  clean  and  healthy,  and 
usually  declare  a  semi-annual  dividend  at  the  rate  of  from  ten  to 
twelve  per  cent.  VViien  such  works  are  executed  by  the  munici- 
palities under  direction  of  boards  of  health,  the  boards  are  invest- 
ed with  plenary  powers  to  the  end  that  the  works  may  fulfil  every 
proper  condition.  The  boards  require  all  houses  within  the  cor- 
porate limits  to  connect  with  the  sewers  ;  they  refuse  to  allow  the 
erection  of  dwellings  on  unhealthy  sites,  they  provide  ventilation 
for  the  main  sewers,  constructed  in  a  way  to  prevent  the  poison- 
ous gasses  from  affecting  the  inhabitants,  thus  lessening  the  chan- 
ces of  the  introduction  of  gasses  from  the  public  sewers  into  the 
private  houses,  and  they  require  all  private  cess  pools  or  other 
repositories  of  filth  to  be  closed. 

All  authorities  on  the  subject  agree  that  the  individual  house- 
keeper has  these  problems  to  solve:  "i.  To  prt)tect  his  house 
against  excessive  damp  in  its  walls,  in  its  cellars  and  where  prac- 
ticable in  the  surrounding  atmosphere.  2.  To  provide  for  the 
perfect  and  instant  removal  ol  all  matter  of  fluid  or  semi  fluid 
organic  waste,  3.  To  provide  a  sufficient  supply  of  pure  water 
for  domestic  use.  4.  To  guard  agamst  the  evils  arising  from  the 
decomposition  of  organic  matter  under  the  house.  5.  To  remove 
all  sources  of  offense  and  danger  which  may  afiectthe  atmosphere 
about  the  house.  6.  To  prevent  the  insidious  entrance  into  the 
house,  through  communications  with  the  sewers,  cess  p)ools,  Sec, 
of  poisonous  gasses  resulting  from  the  decomposition  of  the  re- 
fuse of  his  own  household  with  which  a  common  sewer  n>ay  briuL: 
him  into  communication. 

And  in  the  sewerage  of  towns  the  main  drain  should  conform 
to  the  following  conditions  :  It  should  be  perfectly  tiyht  from  one 
end  to  the  other,  have  a  continuous  fall  from  the  head  to  '.the 
outlet,  be  perfectly  ventilated,  so  that  the  injurious  gasses  that 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENSES.  I37 

necessarily  arise  from  the  decomposition  of  matters  carried  along 
in  the  water  or  which  are  left  clinging  to  the  sewer  walls,  shall  be 
diluted  with  fresh  jiir,  and  shall  have  such  means  of  escape  as  will 
prevent  them  from  forcing  their  way  into  the  dwellings  through  the 
traps  of  the  house  drains.  It  should  also  be  constructed  so  as  to 
admit  of  its  being  inspected  and  of  its  being  flushed  with  pure 
water.  This  ought  to  be  done  several  times  during  the  week  in 
summer.  Its  size  and  form  should  be  so  adjusted  to  its  work,  or 
to  its  flushing  appliances  that  the  usual  dry  weather  flow  may  be 
made  to  keep  it  free  from  silt  and  organic  deposits.  A  sewer  de- 
ficient in  any  one  of  these  particulars  is  unsafe. 
.  Properly  constituted  drains,  we  may  add,  not  only  bear  off*  the, 
filth  cf  towns,  the  source  of  atmospheric  impurity,  and  thereby 
render  unfit  for  occupation  many  of  those  damp,  dark,  unventila- 
ted  basements  which  are  so  prolific  in  tubercular  diseases,  but  les- 
sen, if  they  do  not  altogether  prevent,  other  diseases  which  are 
brought  on  by  a  cold,  saturated  air  and  the  want  of  light  and  ven- 
tilation. The  importance  of  light  to  health  is  worthy  of  particular 
mention  in  this  connection.  Whether  your  house  be  large  or 
small,  give  it  light.  There  is  no  home  so  likely  to  be  unhealthy  as 
a  dark  and  gloomy  house  or  room.  Light  is  necessary  in  order 
that  the  animal  spirits  may  be  kept  refreshed  and  invigorated.  No 
one  is  happy  who  in  working  hours  is  in  a  gloomy  house  or  room. 
The  gloom  of  the  prison  has  been  considered  a  part  of  the  punish- 
ment of  the  prisoner,  and  it  is  so.  The  mind  is  saddened  in  a 
house  that  is  not  flushed  with  light,  and  when  the  mind  is  saddened 
the  whole  physical  power  soon  suffers.  The  heart  beats  languidly, 
the  blood  flows  slowly,  the  breathing  is  imperfect,  the  oxydation 
of  the  blood  is  reduced  and  the  conditions  are  laid  for  the  develop- 
ment of  many  wearisome  and  unnecessary  constitutional  failures 
and  sufl'erings.  Without  light  none  of  the  functions  of  nutrition 
or  growth  will  prosper  ;  it  is  positively  necessary  to  digestion. — 
The  evolution  of  the  tadpole  into  the  frog  is  prevented  if  the  ani- 
mal is  kept  in  the  dark*  The  narrow  street  and  confined  dwelling 
are  prejudicial  to  health,  not  simply  because  the  air  is  pent  up,  but 
because  tlie  blessing  of  light  is  scantily  enjoyed.  Gaslight  when 
introduced  into  these  dismal  cellars  which  many  living  beings  are 
still  permitted  to  inhabit  in  large  cities,  is  the  bearer  and  sustainer 
of  life  ;  it  acts  too,  as  a  powerful  disinfectant,  counteracting  putri- 
faction,  and  destroying  the  spores  of  disease,  rendering  harmless 
the  poisonous  vapors  in  the  air.  The  fact  was  frequently  mention- 
ed to  the  writer  while  in  England  that  small-pox  seldom,  if  ever, 
entered  the  houses  of  those  who  used  gas.  VV^e  have  also  been 
told  that  children  suffering  with  the  whooping  caugh  are  quickly 
cured  by  frequenting  houses  where  gas  is  used  or    manufactured. 


138 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENSES. 


While  unable  from  actual  observation  to  confirm  these  statements 
we  have  no  doubt  of  their  reliability  and  strongly  urge  in  the  cause 
of  health  the  general  use  of  gas  light.  By  substituting  it  for  oil 
we  are  delivered  from  the  danger  ot  explosions,  of  being  burnt  to 
a  cinder,  and  banish  from  our  houses  the  offensive  odor  of  burning 
wicks,  the  grease  and  filth  of  the  cheap  and  foully  smelling  lamp, 
and  any  aerial  poison  they  may  scatter  through  the  apartments. 

The  principles  on  which  houses  and  towns  should  be  drained 
having  been  thus  briefly  explained,  we  must  here  point  out  the 
practical  results,  in  the  way  of  improved  health,  which  have  fol- 
lowed the  introduction  of  a  sewer  system  in  a  number  of  English 
towns. 

Dr.  Latham  gives  the  following  table,  showing  the  effect  on 
health  of  sanitary  works  in  different  towns  in  England  : 


I  Population 
in  i86i. 


Banbury,. . . 

Cardiff, 

Croyden,,  . . 

Davis, 

Ely 

Leicester, .  . 
Macclesfield 

Merthyr 

Newport.  .  . 

Rugby  

Salisbury. . . 
Warwick  . . 


10,288 

32.954 
30.229 
23,108 

7.847 
18.056 

27,475 

52,778 

24752 

7.818 

9.030 
10.570 


Averaije  deaths 

in  1,000 
before  drained. 


,  Reduction  of 
After  drainage. jiyphoid  fever, 
I  rale  per  cent. 


23.4 
33-3 
23.7 
22  I 

23-9 
26.4 
29  8 
33-2 

3'.^ 
191 

27.5 
22  7 


20.5 
22.6 
18.6 
20.9 
20.5 
25.2 

23-7 
26.2 
21.6 

189 
21.9 
21  o 


48 
40 
63 
36 
56 
48 
48 
50 
36 

ID 

75 
52 


It  must  be  remembered  too,  that  this  great  saving  of  life  has 
been  the  result  of  works  that  are  far  from  perfect.  The  average 
reduction  of  typhoid  rate  was  47  J  per  cent.,  nearly  one  half  It  is 
believed  that  perfect  drainage  and  ventilation,  with  a  supply  of 
pure  water  and  plenty  of  light,  would  prevent  the  occurrence  of  a 
single  case.  Comment  upon  such  facts  is  unnecessary.  They  tell 
their  own  tale.  It  has  been  truly  said  that  a  man  is  born  to  health 
and  longevity  /  disease  is  abnormal,  and  death,  except  from  old 
age,  is  accidental,  and  both  are  preventable  by  human  agencies. — 
Those,  therefore,  who  recognize  the  close  relations  between  dis- 
ease and  its  preventable  causes,  should  band  together  in  every 
town  and  city,  and  unite  with  the  public  authorities  in  executing 
plans  for  promoting  and  securing  the  public  health.  The  other 
class  of  ignorant,  indifferent  and  slothful  persons  cannot  be  aroused 
until  the  outbreak  of  some  malignant  disease,  when  it  is  too  late  to 
commence  sprinkling  lime  and  other  disinfectants  in  street  gutters, 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  •  1 39 

cleaning  out  cess  pools,  lighting  up  cellars,  digging   drains   and 
searching  after  a  supply  of  pure  water. 

It  cannot  be  denied  that  this  important  question  is  one  greatly- 
ignored  in  healthy  communities  and  in  towns  which  having  long 
existed  as  villages,  cannot  realize  its  deep  importance  when  they 
have  grown  into  populous  cities.  There  are  few  persons,  indeed, 
whose  attention  has  not  been  specially  drawn  to  the  subject,  who 
realize  the  terrible  significance  of  an  increased  death  rate.  It  is  a 
question  which  involves  not  only  the  health  of  individuals  and 
communities,  but  the  longevity  of  generations.  In  fact  the  great- 
est and  most  distressing  obstacles  to  the  advancement  of  the  human 
race  is  the  impairment  of  individual  lives  by  defective  health.  If 
a  whole  generation  of  men  and  women  could  live  through  the 
present  ordinary  forty  or  fifty  years  of  life,  free  from  periods  of 
illness  so  serious  as  to  interrupt  the  full  exercise  of  their  bodily 
and  mental  powers,  it  is  plain  that  the  unimpeded  physical  labor 
and  mental  activity  of  such  a  generation  would  carry  forward  the 
economies  and  intellectual  progress  of  the  country  in  which  they 
lived  with  a  success  and  velocity  not  to  be  calculated.  No  sources 
of  suffering  or  sorrow  are  more  common  in  the  world  as  it  now 
exists  than  the  spectacle  of  noble  natures  and  noble  enterprises 
reduced  to  failure  and  premature  death  In  millions  of  cases  the 
community  invests,  in  no  figurative  sense,  an  extensive  capital  in 
the  rearing  and  teaching  of  groups  and  classes  of  investigators, 
inventors  and  thinkers,  and  finds  itself  suddenly  deprived  by 
some  malignant  fever  or  wave  of  sickness  of  all  return  for  the 
sacrifices  it  has  made ;  and  so  the  present  generation  is 
made  poorer  and  the  heritage  of  coming  generations  is 
made  less.  As  all  accumulation  and  progress  is  the  result  of 
labor,  it  follows  that  both  must  be  obtained  in  the  highest  degree 
where  the  laborers  enjoy  the  most  vigorous  health  throughout 
the  largest  number  of  years.  The  poverty  and  backwardness  of 
the  Middle  ages  of  Europe  were  mainly  caused  by  the  prevalence 
of  disease  and  by  a  death  rate  so  high  as  to  limit  the  increase  of 
population,  as  we  have  said,  in  some  countries  to  less  than  ten  per 
cent. 

For  many  years  in  England,  France,  and  in  the  Eastern  and 
Northern  States,  the  governments  and  peoples  have  been  more  or 
less  systematically  at  work  devising  plans  and  executing  improve- 
ments with  a  view  to  lessening  the  prevalence  of  disease  and  pro- 
longing human  life  ;  and  for  the  last  few  years  the  force  of  public 
opinion  has  led  the  authorities  of  the  lairger  cities.  North  and  South, 
East  and  West,  to  regard  sanitary  control  as  an  essential  part  of 
local  administration.  Such  fearful  scourges  as  the  yellow  fever 
last  year  in  Memphis,  Grenada  and  other  Southern   cities,   have 


I40  •  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

effectually  aroused  those  afflicted  communities  to  the  necessity  of 
action,  and  already  extensive  works  have  been  carried  out  in  some 
of  them,  notably  in  Memphis.  There  is  reason  to  hope  and  believe 
that  this  enlightened  policy  will  effectually  protect  them  against 
future  visitations  of  pestilence.  In  all  of  our  larger  cities  a  sani- 
tary staff  has  been  appointed,  hospitals  built  for  small  pox  and 
fever  cases,  and  for  the  control  and  limitation  of  epidemic  diseases. 
Among  the  powers  conferred  upon  these  sanitary  boards  or  staffs, 
is  the  important  one  of  demolishing  unwholesome  dwellings,  and 
prohibiting  the  erection  of  houses  upon  unhealthy  sites.  These 
old  buildings  were  the  permanent  seats  of  disease  and^crime. — 
Where  and  whenever  extensive  drains  have  been  constructed  and 
a  supply  of  pure  water  has  been  obtained  for  domestic  use  and 
with  which  to  flush  the  sewers,  the  most  gratifying  diminution  of 
the  death  rates  has  indicated  the  favorable  effects  of  these  sanitary 
measures.  This  has  not  only  been  the  case  in  England,  as  we  have 
seen  from  Dr.  Latham's  tables,  but  in  every  European  country  and 
in  our  own.  In  fact  the  death  rate  has  declined  in  almost  exact 
proportion  to  the  energy  and  extent  of  the  sanitary  measures. 

It  is  to  be  hoped  that  these  cheering  facts  may  have  their  influ- 
ence upon  the  authorities  of  our  prosperous  and  growing  ''city  of 
the  hills,"  and  that  something  may  be  done  by  them  in  this  direc- 
tion before  we  are  reminded  of  the  necessity  of  such  works  by  a 
visita'tion  of  disease  and  the  decimation  of  our  population  by 
death.  When  undertaken,  let  us  hope  that  the  work  may  be  upon 
a  comprehensive  plan  for  the  accommodation  of  tvery  part  of  the 
city  and  large  enough  to  meet  the  wants  of  a  much  greater  popu- 
lation than  Staunton  can  now  number,  'i  hat  our  population  is 
destined  to  be  very  much  increased  by  accessions  from  abroad  and 
within  a  comparative  brief  period,  there  is  every  reason  to  believe. 

With  the  introduction  of  pure  water  into  towns,  the  abolition  of 
underground  and  cellar  dwellings,  still  so  common  in  the  crotl^ded 
parts  of  London,  Paris  and  New  York  and  al)  large  cities:  the 
construction  of  drams  and  sewers,  ventilated  by  shafts  fixed  at 
their  highest  points  and  carried  above  the  ea\es  of  the  houses,  the 
rapid  conveyance  of  all  excretal  matters  long  distances  from  the 
towns  and  the  utilization  of  all  refuse,  animal  or  vegetable  manure, 
typhus  and  typhoid  fever,  once  so  common  in  those  centres  of 
population  has  become  of  comparatively  rare  occurrence  ;  and  all 
other  infectious  diseases  have  been  largely  reduced  in  amount 
while  the  general  health  has  been  improved. 

That  in  any  large  city  among  its  working  classes  typhus  and 
typhoid  fever  should  be  nearly  extinguished  implies  a  dnninution 
of  human  pain  and  misery  which  cannot  be  estimated.  How  ter- 
rible is  the  condition  of  the  widows  and  orphans  deprived   of  the 


RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES.  I4I 

earnings  of  the  husband  and  father  by  premature  death*  at  en- 
trance or  in  the  midst  of  the  productive  period  of  hfe,  for  the  most 
prevalent  and  fatal  forms  of  sickness  among  the  poorer  classes  are 
deadly  fevers.  If  typhus  can  be  reduced  to  a  very  low  point,  a 
latent  resource  of  civilization  will  be  developed  in  a  most  obvious 
and  beneficent  manner,  and  a  potent  mode  of  enlarging  the  means 
of  enjoyment  and  the  possibilities  of  raising  the  race  to  a  higher 
level  of  physical  and  moral  health. 

The  philosopher's  ideal  of  human  health  and  the  duration  of 
human  life  may  not  be,  with  our  present  means  and  knowledge, 
Utopian,  but  it  is  a  noble  ideal  to  keep  before  us.  Life  extends 
naturally  to  five  times  the  number  of  years  required  in  the 
various  orders  of  animals  to  arrive  at  maturity.  The  elephant 
is  young  at  thirty,  and  lives  to  150;  the  horse  matures  at  five,  and 
lives  to  25  years  ;  the  lion  and  ox  mature  at  four,  and  live  to  20; 
the  cat  matures  in  eighteen  months,  and  its  full  life  is  7?  years. 
Man  arrives  at  maturity  at  about  twenty,  and  ought  therefore  to 
live  to  one  hundred.  The  body  ceases  to  grow  at  the  end  of 
twenty  years,  but  it  does  not  cease  to  increase  till  forty,  at  which 
age  it  reaches  its  most  complete  physical  condition.  During  the 
next  thirty  years,  or  to  the  age  of  70,  called  the  period  of  invig- 
oration.  all  the  functions  become  or  ought  to  become  more  cer-- 
tain,  all  of  its  organization  more  perfect.  At  seventy  old  age 
should  begin  and  last  for  about  fifteen  years  ;  from  eighty-five  to 
one  hundred  there  should  be  ripe  old  age,  not  accompanied  by 
disease  or  pain,  but  marked  by  a  gradual  subsidence  of  the  vital 
functions. 

The  possibility  of  arriving  at  this  great  prolongation  of  the 
active,  investigating,  inventive  and  thinking  years  of  human  life  is 
the  most  limitless  of  all  the  latent  resources  of  civilization.  With 
the  present  average  longevity  in  the  United  States  of  thirty  to 
forty  years  the  course  of  public  policy,  peace  or  war,  wisdom  or 
folly,  is  determined  by  men  of  imperfect  and  misleading  experi- 
ence and  reflection  which  are  attained  at  about  thirty.  In  a  com- 
munity livinof  on  the  average  twice  as  long  as  at  the  present,  the 
control  of  affairs  would  be  in  the  hands  of  men  fortified  by  the 
large  wisdom  of  50  or  90  years  ;  and  every  question,  public  or 
private,  would  be  judged  by  men  undisturbed  in  the  exercise  of 
their  faculties  by  defective  health  or  distressing  pain.  Consider 
even  now  what  a  bound  forward  we  should  accomplish  if  for  a 
year  there  were  not  a  single  ailment  in  the  land.  Not  only  would 
the  absence  of  pain  and  disease  prolong  and  render  more  pro- 
ductive in  every  material  and  mental  sense  the  application  of 
human  labor  and  enterprise ;  but  among  its  earliest  effects  would 
be  the  development  of  the  degrees  of  symmetry  and  beauty  in  the 


142  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

human  frame.  Deformity  is  no  part  of  human  nature  and  to  any 
one  who  observes  it  is  plain  that  nature  never  ceases  in  its  eflforts 
to  diminish  or  cure  it ;  and  what  is  more,  nature  is  ever  on  the 
alert  to  translate  into  perfection  of  faculty  and  form  any  improved 
circumstance  of  physical  condition  in  food,  clothine;.  shelter,  or  the 
abolition  of  deo^rading  labor  which  may  chance  to  be  arrived  at  by 
"(he  community  ;  and  so  it  comes  about  that  the  eye  of  reflective 
science,  aided  by  the  growing  certainties  of  knowledge,  can  even 
'now  see  that  the  tendencies  toward  a  higher  physical  life  within 
the  reach  of  human  power  are  beyond  a  doubt. 
'  Human  life  is  so  transitory,  under  all  circumstances,  that  no 
effort  to  prolong:  it  should  be  lost.  Pliny,  the  younger,  thus 
speaks  on  this  subject,  and  we  cannot  close  this  chapter  bettt- r  than 
by  quoting:  the  words  of  that  intelligent  and  highly  educated  man. 
"Is  there  anything  in  nature,"  says  he,  "so  short  and  lim- 
ited as  human  life,  even  at  its  longest  ?  Does  it  not  seem 
to  you  but  yesterday  that  Nero  was  alive?  and  yet  not 
one  of  those  who  were  consuls  in  his  reign  now  remains! 
Though  why  should  I  wonder  at  this?  Lucius  Piso  used 
to  say,  he  did  not  see  one  person  in  the  Senate  whose 
opinion  he  had  consulted  when  he  was  consul ;  in  so  short  a  space 
is  the  very  term  of  life  of  such  a  multitude  of  beings  comprised! 
so  that  to  me  those  Royal  tears  seem  not  only  worthy  of  pardon 
but  of  praise.  For  it  is  said  that  Xerxes,  on  surveying  his  im- 
mense army,  wept  at  the  reflection  that  so  many  thousand  lives 
would  in  such  a  short  space  of  time  be  extinct.  The  more  ardent 
therefore  should  be  our  zeal  to  lengthen  out  this  frail  and  transient 
portion  of  existence,  if  not  by  our  deeds  yet  certainly  by  our  lit- 
erary accomplishments  ;  and  since  long  life  is  denied  us,  let  us 
transmit  to  posterity  some  memorial  that  we  have  at  least  lived." 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  I43 


CHAPTER  XIII. 


THE  ROYAL  MINT — A    DISTINGUISHED    MAN    AND    A    CLUB    CUB  — 
SIR  JOHN  SHELLEY— THE  ILLUSIONS  OF  HISTORY. 

Few  Strangers  visit  London  without  making  an  effort  to  iiee  the 
Mint.  One  of  the  stock  sights,  it  is  pleasantly  associated  with 
new  sovereigns  and  the  jingling  music  of  gold — "bright,  yellow, 
hard  and  cold."  Nor  is  the  Royal  mint  without  great  memories, 
for  the  celebrated  Sir  Isaac  Newton  was  once  master  of  it.  Anti- 
quarians claim  still  greater  associations  for  the  spot,  asserting  that 
Caesar  coined  money  at  this  identical  locality  during  the  Roman 
occupation. 

The  American  is  not  long  in  England,  or,  indeed,  in  any  part 
of  Europe,  without  learning  that  history  is  one  thing  and  tradi- 
tion another  and  a  very  different  thing.  What  is  commonly 
called  history  is  worth  knowing,  though  if  we  are  to  confide  in 
Neibuhr,  Miller  and  other  modern  philosophical  investigators, 
there  is  more  of  fiction  than  of  fact  even  in  history.  This  is  es- 
pecially and  very  naturally  the  case  as  to  ancient  history  which 
has  found,  as  to  the  Romans,  for  example,  such  a  learned  sponsor 
for  its  authority  as  Rollin.  As  for  the  stories  or  traditions  re- 
lated by  guides  to  gaping  tourists,  to  be  retold  on  the  traveler's 
return  home,  and  many  of  which  find  their  way  into  the  average 
guide  book,  they  are  the  merest  stuff  and  rubbish,  pure  inven- 
tions, baseless  as  the  fabric  of  a  vision.  Stories  no  more  to  be  be- 
lieved than  are  those  "interesting"  relics  to  be  taken  as  genuine 
which  are  manufactured  wholesale  at  Birmingham,  to  be  retailed 
by  vendors  of  curiosities  as  relics  from  the  various  battle-fields  of 
Europe;  spots  so  industriously  visited  by  pilgrim  cockneys  and 
such  sort  of  peripatetics.  These  wanderers  who  annually  go 
forth  in  search  of  the  picturesque,  come  back  heavily  laden — not 
always,  however,  with  new  ideas.  One  has  Josephine's  watch  ; 
another  Peter  the  Great's  punch  bowl,  another  the  first  cannon 
ball  fired  at  the  siege  of  Metz,  and  a  fourth  the  sword  carried  by 
the  Bertrand  du  Guelin  in  the  French  wars  against  the  English. 
But  to  be  serious,  two  classes  of  people  generally  go  to  Europe 
for  the  summer,  instead  of  the  watering  places  at  home — pleasure 
seekers  and  merchants  engaged  in  the  foreign  trade.  The  latter 
generally  take  their  families,  or  two  or  three  of  them    at  least. 


144  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

This  increasing  international  intercourse  produces  only  good  re- 
sults on  both  sides  of  the  Atlantic.  These  gigantic  steamers,  fly 
ing  to  and  fro  between  Europe  and  America,  like  shuttles  in  a 
loom,  are  weaving  the  nations  closer  and  closer  together.  Trade 
is  benefitted,  opinions  are  modified,  manners  improved  and  minds 
are  expanded.  Traveling  is,  indeed,  the  very  best  means  of  edu- 
cation ;  and  yet  something  beside  travel  is  essential  to  the  mere 
pleasure  seeker. 

**A  man  may  have  studied  and  traveled  abroad. 
May  sing  like  Apollo  and  paint  like  a  Claud, 
May  speak  all  the  languages  south  of  the  pole. 
And  have  every  gift  in  the  world  but  a  soul." 

It  is  to  be  feared  that  the  majority  of  those  who  now  travel 
abroad  belong  to  the  class  described  by  Lord  Bacon:  "He  that 
traveletli  into  a  country  before  he  has  some  entrance  into  the  lan- 
guage, goeth  to  school  and  not  to  travel,  and  he  knows  not  what 
things  are  worthy  to  be  seen,  what  acquaintances  they  are  to  seek, 
what  exercise  or  discipline  the  place  yieldeth."  In  response  to 
what  kind  of  society  the  traveler  should  seek  his  lordship  con- 
tinues :  "As  for  the  acquaintance  which  is  to  be  sought  m  travel, 
that  which  is  most  of  all  profitable,  is  acquaintance  with  the  secre- 
tary and  employed  men  of  ambassadors,  for  so  in  traveling  in  one 
country  he  shall  seek  the  experience  of  many.  Let  him  also  see 
and  visit  eminent  persons  in  all  kinds,  which  are  of  great  name 
abroad,  that  he  may  be  able  to  tell  how  the  life  agreeth  with  the 
same."  How  few  are  governed  by  this  safe  counsel  1  How  many 
return,  bringing  only  spurious  relics  and  the  fabulous  lore  of  gos- 
sipping  guides. 

But  starting  out  to  strip  history  and. tradition,  in  a  single  sen- 
tence, of  some  of  their  illusions,  we  are  digressing  into  other 
matters.  Let  us  return  by  assuring  the  reader  that  we  want  faith 
in  all  stories  connecting  the  Roman  Dictator  with  money  making 
on  the  spot  now  occupied  by  the  Royal  Mint.  "Money  making" 
was  something  to  which  the  great  Julius  never  descended,  though 
he  would  have  excelled  in  it,  no  doubt,  had  he  chosen.  He  pos- 
sessed, as  all  the  world  knows,  that  kind  of  universality  of  genius 
and  practical  sense,  which  his  modern  imitator  epitomizes  in  these 
words,  "There  is  nothing  in  war,"  said  Napoleon,  "which  I  can- 
not do  by  my  own  hands.  If  there  is  nobody  to  make  gunpowder 
I  can  manutacture  it.  The  gun  carriages  I  know  how  to  construct. 
If  it  is  necessary  to  make  cannon  at  the  forge  I  can  make  them. 
The  details  of  working  then)  in  battle,  if  necessary  to  teach,  1  shall 
teach  them.     In  administration   it   is    1   alone    who   arrange    the 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENSES.  I45 

finances."  Without  doubt  Caesar  would  have  done  all  these  as 
well  if  not  belter  than  Napoleon,  but  as  we  shall  probably  have 
occasion  to  refer  to  him  again — to  his  management  of  his  finances 
and  his  campaigns — before  bidding  adieu  to  the  reader,  we  shall 
now  pass  on  and  occupy  ourselves  for  the  present  with  things  be- 
longinl:  to  the  present. 

Supplied  with  a  permit  to  visit  the  mint,  obtained  from  the  mas- 
ter by  our  friend,  Mr.  William  Boyle,  of  Somersetshire,  we  ap- 
peared one  fine  morning  before  the  gates.  Here  we  were  politely 
received  and  ushured  in  by  a  liveried  servant. 

While  in  the  ante  room,  we  saw  from  a  card  on  the  wall  the 
various  parts  to  be  visited.  We  shall  be  happy  if  our  reader  de- 
rives a  tithe  of  the  pleasure  this  visit  afforded  us  from  the  neces- 
sarily short  account  we  shall  give  of  it. 

Our  guide,  a  man  of  much  intelligence,  of  much  suavity  and 
patience,  conducted  us  first  to  the  smelting  house,  where  we  saw 
six  burning  furnaces  and  in  each  a  pot  full  of  molten  gold. 

He  informed  us  that  the  gold  was  received  from  the  Bank  of 
England  in  sets  of  100  ignots  in  the  form  of  bricks.  The  ingots 
weighing  14  carrots  each  are  brought  to  standard  gold  by  an  alloy 
of  copper  or  silver.  While  our  guide  was  making  these  explana- 
tions, the  preparations  were  going  on  to  decant  the  fluid. 

The  inside  of  the  moulds  were  rubbed  with  oil  that  the  metal 
might  run  more  freely.  A  workman  then  brings  a  pot  full  of  the 
melted  metal.  As  it  is  too  heavy  to  be  easily  held  or  steadily 
poured,  it  is  placed  in  a  ring  and  supported  by  a  crane.  The  ves- 
sel is  steadied  in  the  hands  of  the  workmen  by  means  of  a  rope 
attached  to  the  lever  and  which  is  held  by  another  person.  He  is 
thus  able  to  empty  the  vessel  into/the  moulds  with  ease  and  stead- 
iness. 

It  was  a  most  interesting  sight  and  we  never  wearied  of  looking 
at  the  light  orange  hue  of  the  stream  of  gold.  As  the  metal  ran 
into  the  moulds  it  was  sometimes  accompanied  by  small  pieces  of 
coke,  but  these  from  their  less  specific  gravity  floated  to  the  sur- 
face and  were  easily  separated.  In  a  few  moments  the  metal  in 
the  moulds  appeared  of  a  greenish  white  color,  but  this  was  mere- 
ly a  superficial  crust,  not  thicker  than  a  sheet  of  paper.  The 
moulds  were  now  disjointed,  being  formed  of  iron  bars,  and  out 
came  the  blocks  of  gold  which  were  immediately  plunged  into 
cold  water. 

While  in  this  room  a  large  number  of  unstamped  sovereigns  or 
blanks  as  they  are  called,  were  thrown  into  the  pots,  and  then  pass- 
ed into  the  moulds.  These  imperfect  coins,  the  cuttings,  and  all 
loose  gold  is  thus  disposed  of,  and  the  process  of  smelting  entails 
a  loss  of  only^one  and  a  half  grains  on  the  pound  troy. 


•146  RAMBLING     REMINISCENSES. 

From  this  room  we  passed  to  the  next,  that  was  designated  on 
the  card  we  had  seen,  as  the  rolling  room.  Here  we  were  htcrally 
surrounded  by  bars  and  sheets  of  the  precious  metal.  The  bars 
brought  to  this  room  to  be  rolled  are  about  three-quarters  of  a 
yard  long^.  They  are  presented  to  the  rollers,  b\'  which  they  are 
laminated  and  reduced  to  the  determined  thickness,  which  i?  seven 
grains  too  heavy.  The  sheets  into  which  the  bars  are  reduced  are 
of  three  kinds  and  of  different  thicknesses  and  are  termed  fillets, 
ribbons,  or  leno^ths,  and  to  brincr  them  to  their  proper  conditions 
there  are  in  this  room  six  gradations  of  rollers.  It  not  unfrequent- 
ly  happens  that  a  difficulty  occurs  in  the  process  of  rollini^,  and 
that  the  gold  when  about  three-fourths  rolled  becomes  hard  and 
brittle,  and  entirely  unfit  for  stampintj.  When  this  occurs  it  is  an- 
nealed in  this  manner:  The  lengths  are  placed  in  copper  cases  of 
cylindrical  form,  and  are  again  subjected  to  the  furnace.  When 
taken  out  and  dipped  in  water  they  become  soft  as  lead. 

While  in  this  room  we  were  shown  the  circular  shears,  or   hori- 
zontal circles  of  iron,  which  are  kept  constantly  revolving  by  ma 
chinery.     These  shears  which  'never   tire"  cut   inch   thick    metal 
without  a  moment's  pause  or  cessation.  '  They  are  considered    so 
dangerous  that  they  are  fenced  in  and  secured  by  a  guard. 

In  order  to  ascertain  whether  the  fillets,  sheets  or  lengths  of  gold 
are  of  the  same  thickness  as  the  outside  rim,  several  holes  in  a 
zigzag  form  are  punched  in  them  before  the  stamping  process  com- 
mences. Every  evening  before  the  men  are  allowed  to  leave  the 
mint  the  gold  that  is  weighed  out  to  them  in  the  morning  is  weigh- 
ed back  in  the  evening.  During  the  day  no  workman  is  allowed 
to  leave  the  mint,  consequently  there  is  a  cooking  room  within  the 
walls,  where  all  are  su  pplied  with  food.  The  cooking  is  all  done  by 
gas  so*as  to  prevent  the  necessity  for  bringing  in  coal,  and  to  dimin- 
ish the  opportunities  for  dishonesty.  Instances  of  theft  are  rare, 
but  some  instances  are  on  record,  of  which  the  following  are  two  : 

An  old  soldier,  who  was  once  in  the  employment  of  the  mint, 
watched  a  rnoneyer,  (these  were  persons  who  formerly  contracted 
with  the  government  to  coin  gold  and  silver — a  system  now  entire 
ly  abolished,)  as  he  was  carrying  various  bags  of  gold,  struck  him 
down  and  locked  him  in.  The  rogue  then  seized  four  of  the  bags 
and  ran  off  and  got  upon  board  an  American  ship.  He  was  soon 
tracked  by  those  blood  hounds  of  Themis,  the  Bow  Street  officers, 
and  brought  back,  tried  and  hanged.  The  other  case  was  that  of 
a  workman  who  was  tempted  by  the  gold  passing  through  his 
hands  to  retain  60  sovereigns,  with  which  he  disappeared.  Though 
the  most  vigilant  search  was  instituted  he  was  never  afterwards 
heard  of.  It  is  surmised  that  the  receivers  of  the  stolen  property 
murdered   the  man  and  disposed  of  his  body.     Thiese   robberies 


RAMBLIxXG     REMINISCENCES.  I47 

awakened  the  vigilance  of  the  authorities,  rules  were  established  to 
prevent  thein,  and  they  have  consequently  not  been  repeated. — 
To  enforce  the  rules  of  the  mint  a  company  of  reia^ular  troops  are 
kept  on  £^uard  at  the  establishment  day  and  nii^ht. 

Proceedini^,  we  next  arrived  at  the  adjustin^j^  room,  where  all 
the  fillets,  sheets,  &c,  are  carried  for  examination  and  adjustment. 
By  adjustment  is  meant  seeing  that  every  part  of  the  sheets  is  of 
exact  size  and  weight  of  every  other  part.  When  the  sheets  are 
taken  to  this  room  they  are  seven  grains  heavier  than  necessary. 
Each  length  of  gold  is  inserted  about  two  inches  into  a  flatting 
machine.  The  part  so  inserted  is  "pinched"  half  as  thick  as  the 
remainder  of  the  bar.  It  is  then  taken  to  a  machine,  called  a  draw 
bench,  where  the  pinched  part  is  inserted  between  the  steel  cylin- 
ders. The  sheet  being  drawn  through,  is  cut  into  four  lengths,  and 
passed  to  the  "tryers"  who  take  each  length,  and  with  a  punch, 
the  size  of  a  sovereign,  cuts  out  a  block,  and  it  is  invariably  the 
standard  weight.  In  this  room  there  are  twelve  cutters,  or  presses 
with  an  extreme  pressure  of  one  hundred  "tons.  The  action  of 
these  cutters  is  vertical,  and  at  each  descent  it  cuts  a  sovereign  out 
of  the  golden  sheet.  The  piece  falls  into  a  box  below.  While  we 
were  watching  the  process,  our  friend,  the  parson,  counted  nearly 
a  hundred  sovereigns  which  had  dropped  into  the  box.  When  full 
this  box  is  emptied  linto  trays,  of  which  there  were  many  in  the 
room,  each  containing  five  thousand  sovereigns  or  about  $25,000. 
The  remnants  of  gold  left  from  this  process  are  called  "scissel"  from 
the  latin  word  scissiim,  to  cut,  and  are  re-melted.  The  sovereigns 
are  taken  from  this  room  into  what  is  called  the  sizing  room,  where 
each  piece  is  weighed  to  ascertain  whether  it  is  standard  weight, 
then  reweighed  by  another  set  of  men  called  cheatmen.  They  are 
then  passed,  if  all  right,  to  the  ringers,  who  sound  them  on  iron 
anvils  and  reject  those  which  do  not  ring.  The  others  are  passed 
into  the  strongholds,  which  are  fastened  with  formidable  doors, 
with  double  locks,  requiring  two  keys  to  open  them,  and  these 
keys  are  kept  by  two  different  persons. 

From  these  strongholds  the  blank  sovereigns,  which  are  very 
hard  and  brittle,  are  taken  to  the  annealing  room  to  be  softened 
and  tempered.  These  blanks,  in  iron  boxes,  are  put  into  the  furn- 
ace. They  are  then  boiled  in  diluted  sulphuric  acid  in  order  to 
remove  every  particle  of  impurity.  They  are  then  put  into  an 
oven  to  dry  and  are  afterwards  shaken  in  beechwood  sawdust,  that 
they  may  be  clean  and  warm  to  receive  the  impression.  Great 
care  and  delicacy  are  required  in  these  processes,  for  the  blanks 
if  heated  even  a  very  few  degrees  more  than  enough,  wonld  run 
into  a  mass,  and  if  not  sufficiently  heated,  condensation  would  take 
place  and  the  impression  would  be  spoiled. 


148  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 

The  blanks  are  now  transferred  to  the  press  room  where  they  are 
stamped  and  made  coins.  Our  guide  explained  in  an  admirable 
manner  how  this  was  done.  He  first  showed  the  lower  part  of  the 
press,  round  the  top  of  which  he  placed  a  milled  collar.  This  col- 
lar rested  on  a  spring.  He  then  placed  the  blank  upon  the  lower 
die,  and  showed  how  the  spring  causes  the  collar  to  rise.  Then 
the  upper  die  descends  with  great  force,  by  mere  impetus,  stamps 
the  mipression  and  expands  the  gold  till  it  fits  and  fills  the  collar, 
and  at  the  same  time  the  milling  is  transferred  to  the  edge  of  the 
piece.  The  dies  are  made  of  cast  steel  very  finely  tempered  and 
engraved. 

The  presses  stamp  upon  an  average  sixty  pieces  per  minute,  or 
3,600  per  hour,  or  in  a  day  of  ten  hours  36,000  pieces  or  $180,000. 
The  eight  presses  in  a  room,  if  they  were  all  in  operation,  would 
thus  stamp  in  a  day  288,000  pieces,  or  ij'i, 440,000.  The  last  room 
to  which  we  were  conducted  was  the  weighing  room,  where  the 
blanks  are  weighed  in  the  most  perfect  of  all  weighing  machines — 
Colton's  Automaton  Balance.  These  blanks  subjected  to  the 
weighing  process  turn  out  to  be  three  kinds,  the  heavy,  medium, 
or  light.  The  first  and  last  are  recast,  the  medium  only  are  retain- 
ed for  circulation,  although  they  are  not  quite  standard  weight. — 
Not  one  sovereign  in  a  thousand  is  standard  weight  and  yet  by 
the  balances  in  use  the  i-i50th  part  of  a  farthing's  value  can  be 
weighed.  The  most  delicate  scales,  deflect  eight  times  out  of  ten 
with  the  thousandth  part  of  a  grain,  the  smallest  fraction  used 
for  practicable  purposes.  The  reason  blank  sovereigns  only  a  lit- 
tle above  the  medium  are  rejected  and  remelied,  when  the  merest 
touch  of  the  file  would  bring  them  to  the  proper  weight,  is  because 
there  would  be  loss,  waste  and  temptation,  and  besides  it  would  be 
an  imperfect  mode  of  coining. 

Walking  out  from  this  instructive  visit  we  ruminated  as  we  pro- 
ceeded towards  the  tower,  upon 

••Gold!  gold!  gold!  gold! 
Bright  and  yellow,  hard  and  cold, 
Molten,  graven,  hammer'd  and  rolled; 
Heavy  to  get.  and  light  to  hold  ! 
Hoarded,  bartered,  bought  and  sold." 

On  our  return  from  "the  city"  Mr.  Boyle,  who  had  previously 
asked  us  to  dine  with  him,  said  that  we  should  have  the  company 
of  Sir  John  Shelley.  We  enjoyed  much  the  prospect  of  meeting 
this  veteran,  having  heard  him  speak  two  or  three  times  in  the 
House  of  Commons,  and  having  heard  a  great  deal  in  society  of 
him,  of  his  advanced  liberal  or  Americanized  opinions  and  his  vig- 
orous forensic  efforts  and  encounters  in  the  House  with  the  cham- 
pions of  the  tory  party. 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  I49 

A  few  minutes  before  the  dinner  hour,  Sir  John  made  his  ap- 
pearance in  company  with  a  young  man  by  the  name  of  Henniker. 
This  young  gentleman  had  that  well-known  audacity  of  manner 
and  address  which  belong  to  the  "howling  swell"  of  Picadilly  or 
West'  end  "Club  Cub,"  a  coarse  bark- like  laugh,  and  spoke  with  a 
drawl.  He  interposed  his  exclamations  with  many  aw-aws,  as  "God 
bless  my  soul !  aw."  "You  don't  say  so,  aw."  "I  cawn't  make  it  out ! 
aw,  aw  !"  and  yawning  slightly,  he  would  subside  for  a  time  into  a 
placid  stupidity. 

With  Sir  John,  we  need  scarcely  say,  we  were  much  better  pleas- 
ed. His  presence  and  manner,  let  us  add  before  going  further, 
impressed  us  more  in  the  parlor  than  in  the  Senate.  His  personal 
appearance  was  striking  and  his  manner  what  the  French  style 
disiingue.  Though  at  first  he  was  what  the  English  are  apt  to  be, 
a  little  stiff,  awkward  and  embarrassed,  he  soon  became  easy,  then 
free,  (the  sherry  had  passed  several  times  before  this)  and  finally 
delightful  company.  Under  what  the  middle  class  styled  his  "aris- 
tocratic demeanor,"  we  discovered  a  kindly  nature  and  generous 
soul ;  an  unpretending  sturdy  John  Bull,  uniting  at  once  the  gen- 
tleman and  the  man  of  business. 

He  evinced  a  strong  wish  to  talk  upon  the  subject  of  ^  America 
and  asked  numerous  questions  as  to  the  practical  workings  of  our 
Republican  institutions,  making  what  we  considered  a  just  and 
sensible  observation  that  he  did  not  consider  the  question  of  Re- 
publican government,  as  at  all  involved  in  the  issue  of  the  civil 
war,  that  the  war  was  something  totally  separate  and  apart  from 
the  principles  of  government,  and  the  result  of  a  difference  in  the 
property  and  institutions  of  the  Northern  and  Southern  States  and 
in  the  people  themselves.  Republican  government  was  not  in  his 
opinion  on  its  trial  in  the  United  States,  as  the  Tories  wish  us  to 
believe,  and  however  the  war  may  end,  said  he,  you  will  have  only 
Republics,  the  U.  S.  Government  restored,  or  Republics  North  and 
South.  He  further  said  that  he  had  long  advocated  the  assimila- 
tion of  English  laws  to  those  of  America,  had  favored  the  vote  by 
ballot,  the  extension  of  the  suffrage  to  all  rate  payers,  and  triennial 
parliaments.  Indeed,  said  he,  I  have  been  ironically  called  the 
people's  idol  and  seriously  denounced  as  the  mob  orator.  Here- 
upon he  laughed  heartily.  And  this,  too,  said  he,  recovering  fronis 
his  merriment,  though  I  represent  in  my  person  the  Barony  of 
Sudely,  which  has  been  in  abeyance  five  centuries,  and  which  I 
c'aim  and  shall  seek  to  have  revived,  and  off  he  went  again  with 
loud  laughter. 

During  the  dinner  he  informed  us  that  he  was  returned  to  Par- 
liament for  the  first  time  at  the  general  election  in  1852,35  a  mem- 
ber for  Westminster.     His  object  in  desiring  a  seat  in  the    House 


r-jS^ 


I50  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

was  to  assist  in  the  development  of  the  ji^reat  work  of  reform,  so  far 
as  it  was  compatible  with  the  state  of 'public  advancement  and  the 
theory  of  the  existing  British  Constitution.  "I  was  then  and  I 
suppose  I  ought  to  say  am  now,  a  patriot  devoted  to  the  interest 
of  my  country,"  continued  Sir  John  with  a  twinkle  in  his  eye, 
"though  Dr.  Johnson  once  testily  defined  patriotism  as  the  last 
refuge  of  the  scoundrel."  It  is  needless  to  say  that  this  is  not  my 
definition.  This  remark  and  his  comical  manner  again  set  the  table 
in  a  roar.  The  conversation  now  branched  oflf  for  some  time  into 
channels  suggested  by  his  remarks.  After  awhile,  when  we  had 
subsided  into  a  more  quiet  mood.  Sir  John  said  that  his  colleague 
in  this  Westminster  contest  was  Sir  de  Lacy  Evans,  (subsequently 
so  much  distinguished  as  a  Major  General  in  the  army  of  the  Cri- 
mea,) and  the  Tory  candidate.  Viscount  Maidstone,  son  of  Sir 
Finch- Hatton,  Earl  of  Winchilsea,  and   Mr.  William  Coningham. 

This  election  gave  rise  to  immense  excitement,  and  in  the  midst 
of  the /?iror  it  wds  thought  ihe  seat  of  Sir  de  Lacy  was  in  great 
jeopardy,  but  on  the  close  of  the  polls,  the  General  was  elected  by  a 
majority  of  4(X), while  mine  was  over  700,  So  much  for  a  mob  orator. 

We  informed  him  that  we  had  twice  heard  him  address  the 
House,  at  which  the  Honorable  Baronet  seemed  much  gratified. 
We  did  not  tell  him  our  opinion,  that  while  a  frequent  speaker  he 
has  no  pretentions  to  oratoiy.  His  delivery  is  bold  and  rapid  and 
without  the  slightest  attempt  at  effect,  he  conveys  to  his  auditors 
the  most  truthful  expression  of  his  political  statements. 

While  the  friend  of  progress  and  reform,  Sir  John  has  not.  nor 
could  he  ever  become  a  radical  of  the  modern  type.  He  sympa- 
thized largely  with  the  young  England  movement,  but  he  had 
•'no  objection  to  the  lord,  provided  he  was  a  gentle  one."  The 
course  of  the  Tory  party  hurried  him  to  lengths  of  which  other- 
wise he  never  would  have  dreamed.  He  might  have  been  utilized 
by  a  wiser  aristocracy  as  a  wiser  Church  of  England  might  have 
utilized  Wesley.  However  they  lost  their  chance,  and  Sir  John 
Shelley  had  come  to  entertain  principles  utterly  at  variance  with 
any  form  of  Toryism  whatever.  Sir  John  Shelley  is  proverbial  in 
private  life  for  his  known  uniformity  of  conduct  ;  from  tempera- 
ment not  less  than  policy,  he  is  ever  consistent ;  at  all  times  con- 
ciliating ;  neither  harsh  nor  dogmatical  to  those  differing  from  him 
in  opinion,  but  ready  to  extend  the  olive  branch  to  his  opponents 
when  the  heat  of  controversy  has  subsided.  Through  his  active 
career  as  a  public  man  he  has  been  characterised  by  his  strict  sense 
of  honor,  his  uniform  urbanity  and  kindness.  His  whole  career 
illustrates  well  the  remark  of  Saurin,  "True  courtesy  of  manners  is 
one  of  the  fruits  of  the  love  of  God.  It  is  Christian  benevolence  car- 
ried into  detail,  and  operating  upon  all  circumstances  of  social  life." 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  I5I 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

THE     DERBY   DAY— BRITISH    LOVE    OF     SPORT — THE     POPULARITY 
OF   THE    TURF  — THE    CELEBRATED    RACER    ECLIPSE. 


Sir  Francis  Bacon,  administering  some  wholesome  advice- to  his 
patron  and  friend,  George  Villiers.  afterwards  Duke  of  Bucking- 
ham, the  favorite  and  prime  minister  of  James  I,  declares  that  in 
the  courts  of  princes  "there  must  be  times  for  pastimes  and  dis- 
ports;" and  he  recommends  the  "riding  of  the  great  horse,  the  tilts, 
the  barriers,  tennis  and  hunting,  which  are  more  for  the  health  and 
strength  of  those  who  exercise  them,  than  in  an  effeminate  way  to 
please  themselves  and  others."  How  far  this  sage  counsel  may- 
have  contributed  to  the  modern  prevalent  taste,  among  all  classes  of 
English,  for  out-doors  sports,  it  is  difficult  to  say.  That  they  love 
fresh  air — boating,  running,  leaping,  boxing,  wrestling  and  the 
quoit — in  a  word  all  kinds  of  athletic  games  and  open  air  exercises 
and  manly  sports,  is  undeniable.  There  never  is  a  horse  race  with- 
out an  Englishman  being,  if  possible,  there  or  thereabouts.  The 
good  effect  of  these  habits,  too,  is  easily  recognized  in  the  ruddy 
complexions  and  robust  constitutions  of  both  men  and  women  in 
their  breed  of  good  horses.  While  the  women  certainly  do  not 
engage  in  steeple  chasing,  pigeon  shooting  and  such  like  convivi- 
alty,  they  are  great  pedestrians  ^nd  understand  the  importance  to 
health,  mental  and  physical,  of  exercise  and  wholesome  sports. — 
Fond  of  archery,  lawn  tennis,  croquet,  some  of  them  have  been 
known  in  times  past  to  act  the  jockey,  many  at  the  present  day 
follow  the  hounds,  and  almost  all  attend  the  races. 

The  Empress  of  Austria,  Elizabeth  Amelia  Eugenie,  daughter 
of  the  Duke  Maximilian-Joseph,  and  cousin  to  the  King  of  Bavaria, 
an  English  woman  in  her  tastes,  who  is  specially  given  up  to  the 
chase,  has  within  the  past  month  of  1880,  sent  from  Austria  to  Ire- 
land, fifty  hunters  and  a  train  of  servants,  that  she  might  engage 
in  this  healthful  exhilirating  sport.  Only  four  of  these  steeds  are 
intended  for  her  Majesty's  own  use,  the  others  will  be  used  by  her 
attendants. 

Such  habits  not  only  improve  the  physique,  but  refresh  and  in- 
vigorate the  spirits,  and  the  stranger  quickly  discovers,  after  ming- 
ling with  the  British  in  the  mother  country,  that  the  merrie  isle  is 
inhabited   by   a  jolly  race.     He  is  not  long  in  learning   that   the 


152  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 

common  estimate  of  John  Bull  by  the  outside  world  is  a  false  and 
erroneous  estimate  ;  that  the  sturdy-Briton  is  not,  as  many  imagine, 
of  a  cold  and  arid  nature,  morose,  unsympathetic  and  deficient  in 
the  finer  feelings  of  human  nature.  On  the  contrary,  quite  the 
reverse.  Under  his  frigid  exterior  there  lies  a  genial  temper  and 
kindly  nature.  Break  through  the  ice  and  you  find  a  living  stream 
beneath.  However  reserved,  haughty  and  blunt  John  Bull  may 
appear  to  the  world,  he  is  in  reality,  as  all  discover  who  know  him 
well,  an  honest,  generous,  good  fellow,  fond  of  society,  of  sport, 
of  sherry.  The  heat  of  his  nature  may  be  latent,  but  it  only  needs 
the  friction  of  society,  the  sight  of  woe,  the  presence  of  danger, 
to  disengage,  set  it  free. 

Entertaining  these  views,  we  need  scarcely  say  that  we  have 
found  little  among  them  to  justify  the  remark  of  Addison  in  the 
Spectator :  ''The  English  are  naturally  fanciful,  and  by  that  gloom- 
iness and  melancholly  of  temper  which  is  so  frequent  in  our  nation, 
we  are  often  disposed  to  many  wild  notions,  to  which  others  are 
not  liable." 

Decidedly  British  in  our  tastes  we  looked  forward  with  no  small 
pleasure  to  witnessing  the  great  national  Olympic  on  the  Derby 
day.  Roused  up  on  the  morning  of  the  4th  of  June  by  an  unu- 
sual uproar  in  the  streets,  we  quickly  despatched  our  breakfast  and 
issued  forth.  All  London  was  astir  for  the  Denby,  the  event  with 
which  the  day  was  big.  The  streets  were  crowded  with  every  de- 
scription of  vehicles  from  the  coster- monger's  donkey  cart,  to  the 
fancy  gentleman's  four-in  hand.  Business  was  at  a  stand  still  and 
the  mews  and  slums,  as  well  as  the  squares  and  avenues,  poured 
forth  a  continuV)us  stream  of  human  beings.  Lords  and  gentle- 
men, bankers  and  merchants,  shop  keepers  and  workmen,  men, 
women  and  children,  all  came  forth,  bent  upon  a  spree.  A  single 
instinct  seemed  to  animate  the  entire  mass.  Everywhere  in  the 
streets,  vehicles  stood  taking  in  their  living  freight  and  no  end  of 
boxes  of  "wittels"  and  baskets  of  bottles.  Flags  were  suspended 
from  the  carriages  and  the  horses  were  gaily  decked  with  ribbons ; 
the  common  people  hurrying  on  foot  to  the  downs,  where  in  their 
holiday  attire,  though  out  upon  a  "rough  roll  and  tumble  excur- 
sion," while  the  "swells"  who  were  perched  upon  the  tops  of  the 
omnibusses  or  peered  from  the  cabs  were  smartly  dight,  and  thick- 
ly veiled  in  light  blue  or  violet  ialls.  The  fair  sex  mustered  in  im- 
mense force,  in  summer  dress  and  crowded  the  vehicles  or  trudged 
on  the  side  walks.  Many  of  the  lower  orders  who,  doubtful  of 
their  powers  to  do  the  journey  on  foot  in  a  single  morning,  even 
under  the  inspiration  of  gin  toddy  and  rum  bitters,  had  started  the 
day  before  and  were  now  camped  upon  the  field  or  were  setting 
forth  on  their  journey  from  the  road  side  pot-house.     The   roads 


RAMBLING     REMINISCRNSES.  I53 

leading  to  the  course  were  filled  with  a  double  line  of  vehicles,, 
crowds  of  horsemen  and  pedestrians  and  at  the  distance  of  twelve 
miles  from  London  were  so  blocked  up  that  frequent  halts  were 
necessary.  From  the  windows  of  many  of  the  houses  on  the 
route  fla^s  were  displayed,  the  union  jack  and  the  tricolor,  and 
indeed  the  fla^s  of  all  nations,  conspicuous  among  them  the  stars 
and  stripes,  notwithstanding  the  "Harvey  Birch"  affair,  the  Trent 
affair  and  affairs  generally  on  the  American  side  of  the  Atlantic. 
Many  private  ensigns  fluttered  in  the  morning  breeze,  giving  no- 
tice of  Tom  and  Jerry  shops  and  other  public  places  where  cor- 
dials and  bitters  and  other  things  good  and  bad  might  be  had  for 
the  money.  The  road  was  further  enlivened  by  rustics  who  gath- 
ered on  the  sidewalks  and  stared  open  eyed  and  open  mouthed 
at  the  cavalcade. 

Mounting  a  cob,  we  had  been  previously  invited  to  make  one  of 
a  party  of  four,  we  joined  the  crowd  unwilling  to  lose  so  fine  an 
opportunity  of  seeing  the  people  and  increasing  our  knowledge  of 
their  manners  and  customs.  But  for  this  wish  to  see  them  to  the 
best  advantage  on  a  gala  day,  we  should  have  made  our  way  to 
Epsom  by  train. 

The  first  public  house  of  consequence  which  lay  in  our  route 
was  the  famous  South  London  Inn  called  the  Elephant  and  Castle. 
Here  great  crowds  halted  for  the  refreshment  of  'arf  and  'arf  or  a 
gill  of  "old  tom''  the  reputation  of  the  E.  and  C.  wines  and  viands 
being  unbounded.  Follow^ing  suite,  we  too  stopped  to  wash  down 
the  dust  with  the  famous  "hale."  D.  Horbes  Campbell,  the  friend 
and  intimate. of  Napoleon  III,  (a  relative  of  Lord  Clyde)  and  the 
translator  of  the  Emperor's  Idees  Napoleoniennes  into  English, 
Osborne  Stock,  afterwards  M.  P..  for  Carlow  burroughs,  and  Capt. 
Manners  made  up  our  party.  After  partaking  of  a  mug  of  the 
bitter  the  writer  wished  to  be  off,  but  Manners  insisted  with  such 
good  natured  pertinacity  on  the  party  stopping  for  a  second  tank- 
ard and  a  smoke,  that  we  settled  down  until  the  white  ashes  had 
fallen  from  the  ends  of  our  Havannas.  The  gallant  Captain  assur- 
ed us  that  the  delay  would  be  of  service  as  the  crowd  must  lessen 
and  our  journey  be  advanced  by  a  little  masterly  inactivity.  Re- 
mounting our  horses  after  this  delay  we  found  the  streets  as  full  as 
ever.  Threading  our  way  onward  as  well  as  possible  we  finally 
reached  the  open  country.  Shortly  afterwards,  Stock,  who  was  a 
politician  always  watching  for  a  weak  point  in  the  Tory  policy, 
discovered  a  "hole  in  the  hedge."  He  had  no  sooner  pointed  this- 
out  to  Manners  than  the  latter  leaped  his  hunter  through  the  gap^ 
we  all  followed  suite  and  scaiDpered  onward  over  the  sod  as  near 
to  a  gait  of  2.40  as  our  steeds  could  approach.  As  we  galloped 
on  we  fancied  we  could  hear  the  furious  voices  of  the   indignant 


154  RAMBLING     REMINISCENSES.        ' 

farmer  and  his  servants  crying  after  us,  and  the  sharp  prongs  of 
steel  pitchforks,  flails,  scythes  and  other  rustic  weapons  floated 
across  our  excited  imaginations.  Our  engagements  at  Epsom,  how- 
ever, did  not  admit  of  any  delay  to  verify,  had  we  desired,  these 
suspicious  sounds.  The  only  effect  of  the  discordant  noises,  so 
out  of  place  on  this  happy  day,  was  to  urge  our  steeds  to  greater 
exertions.  Soon  we  were  beyond  reach  of  the  din  and  no  longer 
disturbed  in  mind  by  that  rustic  force  and  those  ugly  looking  and 
dangerous,  though  vulgar,  implements  of  war. 

At  eleven  o'clock  we  reached  the  course  where  not  less  than 
200,000  persons  were  already  assembled.  The  scene  was  what 
newspaper  reporters  style  'brilliant,"  and  while  apparently  the 
utmost  confusion  prevailed,  there  was  really  the  best  of  order. 
Tents  and  booths  were  pitched  in  every  direction  and  tens  of 
thousands  of  flags  fluttered  in  the  breeze  -vehicles  were  scattered 
over  the  vast  area  of  sward,  and  horses  were  tethered  far  and  wide. 
Equipages  were  arriving  by  every  road  and  coming  into  collision 
with  others  returning.  There  was  consequently  a  dismal  spec- 
tacle of  smashed  panels,  lost  spokes,  broken  axles  and  jaded 
beasts.  Crowds  on  foot  were  pouring  in  from  all  the  roads  and 
across  the  newly  mown  fields.  On  the  ground  or  heath  the  peo- 
ple were  indulging  in  a  variety  of  rustic  games.  Every  kind  of 
character  was  present  from  the  highest  of  the  "old  nobility"  to  the 
lowest  of  the  houseless  tramp.  A  glance  in  any  direction  showed 
you  stupid  looking  German  bands,  swarthy  Italian  organ  grinders, 
foot  sore  gypsies,  montebanks  of  every  description.  Near  us  a 
female  was  crying  shrimps  for  sale,  while  further  off,  near  a  crowd 
of  women,  a  man  bawled  at  the  top  of  his  voice,  "Buy  a  box  of 
patent  lozenges,  good  for  pains  in  the  belly."  The  light-fingered 
gentlemen,  from  the  thimble-rigger  to  the  card  sharper,  in  the 
highest  spirits,  were  industriously  f)lying  their  avocations.  From 
a  dirty,  ill  conditioned  looking  fellow  on  his  knees  busily  shuffling 
three  cards,  you  heard  in  persuasive  notes.  "Pick  out  the  face 
card,  gentleman,  and  you  11  win  a  sovereign."  A  number  of 
sleeping,  but  by  no  means  silent  partners,  stood  round  about  and 
lost  and  won  their  money,  generally  winning,  in  order  to  entice 
the  unwary.  There  was  a  party  playing  at  the  game  of  "Knock 
'em  down,"  very  popular  with  aspirants  ibr  police  service.  There 
was  another  at  the  favorite  amusement  of  "Aunt  Sally,"  not  far 
oft.  The  arrows  of  an  archery  party  whizzed  incessantly  through 
the  air,  and  every  moment  you  were  startled  by  the  sharp  and 
rapid  reports  from  the  pistol  galleries,  while  the  course  was  all 
over  dotted  with  groups  engaged  In  the  exhilixating  sport  of 
flinging  cudgels  at  long  slender  wands,  the  tops  of  which  were 
surmounted  by  tin  or  wooden  tobacco  boxes,  velvet  pin  cushions 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  I55 

and  hollow  wooden  boxes  framed  to  represent  apples,  pears  and 
oranq^es.  Young  men  sauntered  about  with  lon^^  red  j^asteboard 
probocis,  and  viewed  their  friends  through  six- penny  spectacles. 
Woman,  their  unkempt  hair  flowing  over  their  shoulders,  scrolled 
about,  followed  by  their  promising  offspring,  the  broods  often  as 
large  as  that  of  John  Rodgers,  and  the  mothers  often,  as  with 
Rodger's  wife,  with  one  at  her  breast.  Young  ladies  now  and 
then  screamed  nervously  at  some  strange  sight ;  in  a  word,  a 
scene  of  the  most  indescribable  bustle  and  uproar  prevailed.  Not- 
withstanding, however,  the  vast  assemblage  and  its  mixed  char- 
acter, there  was  no  disorder,  no  rowdy  turbulence,  no  disposition 
for  riot.  We  were  much  struck  with  this  fact.  It  would  be  hard 
to  assemble  in  France  or  the  United  States  five  thousand  people 
without  a  profusion  of  black  eyes  and  bloody  noses.  Here  a 
ready  obedience  was  paid  to  the  few  policemen  who  were  present 
and  every  one  seemed  to  be  in  the  best  possible  humor.  It  was  a 
fine  illustration  of  the  Anglo  Saxon  love  of  order — a  thing  which 
seems  to  be  inherent  to  the  English  character  and  which  must  not 
be  supposed  to  result  from  special  repression  in  the  laws.  No- 
where are  they  more  liberal  than  in  England,  whatever  erroneous 
ideas  to  the  contrary  may  prevail  in  America.  Many  of  us  im- 
agine, in  our  ignorance,  tliat  o/.rs  is  the  only  "land  of  the  free  and 
home  of  the  brave."  It  is  a  great  mistake  :  a  stupendous  blunder. 
Nowhere  are  the  rights  of  the  people  more  jealously  guarded  than 
in  England,  nowhere  is  there  a  greater  spirit  of  resistance  to 
tyranny.  This  the  history  of  centuries  proves.  So  far  as  our 
knowledge  of  England  and  the  English  extends — a  knowledge 
derived  from  a  careful  perusal  of  her  history  and  many  visits,  ex- 
tending over  a  period  of  nearly  twenty  years,  and  long  residence, 
we  are  satisfied  that  they  have  little  to  envy  in  tbe  condition  of 
others,  even  of  those  who  assume  to  be  the  freest,  happiest  and 
best  governed  people  on  the  globe.  We  cannot  stop  to  explain 
how  they  are  as  free,  why  they  are  as  happy,  and  in  what  they 
are  as  well  governed  as  the  best.  Let  those  who  doubt  it  ex- 
amine her  laws,  daily  becoming  more  liberalized,  watch  the 
operations  of  her  enduring  institutions  and  visit  her  homes. 

But  we  must  not  forget  that  we  are  on  the  race  course.  The 
grand  stand,  perched  at  an  immense  distance  in  the  air,  was  al- 
ready well  filled  with  spectators,  as  were  the  numerous  smaller 
stands  by  which  it  is  flanked.  Conspicuous  on  the  central  plat- 
form, among  the  "modish  fancy,"  were  the  Japanese  ambassadors, 
who  looked  very  billions,  somewhat  bewildered  and  decidedly- 
bored  though  it  was  reported  they  had  staked  heavy  sums  and 
could  not  be  indifferent  to  the  issue.  Lord  Palmerston  and  many 
of  his  parliamentary  supporters  and  opponents  in  both  Houses  of 


156  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 

Parliament,  was  also  on  the  stand,  smilin;^  and  bowing  in  his  hap- 
piest niood.  He  wore  a  blue  coat  with  a  velvet  collar,  and  was, 
as  usual,  sucking  a  rye  straw.  It  was  thought  from  his  unfla^jG^iniy 
good  humor,  that  he  had  made  the  opening  of  diplomatic  relations 
with  thejapenese  Empire  the  occasion  of  pocketing  the  ;^30,ooo, 
which  it  was  said  and  believed  the  ambassadors  had  staked  and 
lost.  The  miscellaneous  education  he  had  received  in  early 
youth  and  his  long  official  career  seems  to  have  fitted  the  veteran 
Viscount  for  every  company  and  occasion,  and  at  a  horse  race  he 
was  certainly  as  much  at  home  as  in  the  House  of  Commons  in  a 
desperate  party  struggle. 

After  preliminary  races  to  which  little  attention  was  paid,  the 
people  were  notified  by  the  loud  ringing  of  bells,  that  the  great 
event  of  the  day  was  about  to  cotne  off.  The  thirty-two  horses 
entered  lor  the  Derby,  mounted  by  their  gaily  dressed  jockeys 
were  trotted  out  and  took  a  preliminary  canter.  They  were  then 
drawn  up  in  line,  and  after  several  starts,  which  were  pronounced 
false,  the  flag  lell  and  off  they  bounded,  swift  as  an  arrow  from  the 
bow,  the  victor  reaching  the  winning  post,  a  mile  and  a  half  dis- 
tant, in  something  in  the  neighborhood  of  2:40  to  the  mile. 

The  result  was  immediately  announced.  An  "outsider,"  an  un- 
known horse,  against  v/hom  forty  to  one  was  bet,  had  won.  The 
announcement  was  followed  by  a  lull  of  a  few  minutes,  when  the 
people  commenced  hurrying  away  as  for  life  or  death,  by  every 
road  and  pathway — some  to  the  railroad  stations,  some  by  the 
pikes,  in  vehicles  or  on  horseback,  and  thousands  on  foot  and 
over  the  fields.  Boys  from  ten  to  twenty  years  of  age,  of  whom 
there  were  multitudes,  formed  the  larger  part  of  the  pedestrians. 
These  urchins  had  walked  out  in  the  morning  and  were  now 
setting  out  on  their  return.  Not  a  few  were  limping  like  wounded 
hares,  but  their  spirits  were  not  only  good,  but  hilarious.  They 
set  forward  with  that  stubborn  resolution,  so  characteristic  of  the 
English  race,  and  which  has  caused  it,  in  whatever  part  of  the 
world,  to  endure  all  that  is  necessary  to  secure  their  object.  In 
patient  determination  and  dogged  resolution.  John  Bull  is  indeed 
unsurpassed  by  the  Ass.  England  has  thus  become  the  colon- 
izer of  the  world,  the  spawner  of  nations.  The  physical  and 
moral  qualities  of  the  British  breed,  we  may  say,  en  passant,  so 
fit  them  for  colonizing,  that  no  other  race  can  compete  with  them. 
If  the  French  or  Dutch  establish  colonies,  they  are  sooner  or  later 
absorbed  by  the  English.  This  has  happened  not  only  in  Amer-' 
ica,  but,  more  or  less,  all  over  the  worJd.  •  British  love  of  adven- 
ture, hardihood,  industry  and  bull  dog  tenacity,  and  the  fertility 
of  the  British  mother,  have  established  the  English  speaking  race 
in  America,  peopled  the  continent  of  Australia  and  the  North  Pa- 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  I57 

cific  Islands,  South  Africa,  and  have  even  made  headway  in  the 
crowded  population  of  India  and  China.  Unto  them  this  planet 
seems  to  be  given.  For  this  reason  hard  times,  silent  industries 
and  financial  panics,  such  as  in  recent  years  she  has  seen  and  such 
as  would  blight  other  nations  only  arouse  old  England  to  an- 
other of  her  great  efforts.  She  thins  her  overcrowded  population 
by  emigration,  and  thus  relieves  distress  by  founding  new  colonies. 
Australia,  Demarara,  South  Africa,  Canada,  and  the  United  States 
offer  broad  welcome  to  English  emigrants.  For  the  best  governed 
parts  of  the  world,  the  regions  ol  greatest  happiness,  freedom  anc) 
comfort,  are  those  where  English  is  spoken.  In  short  the  English 
have  issued  forth  fron)  their  tight  little  island  and  conquered  half 
the  world,  and  before  the  other  half  becomes  aware  of  what  is  go- 
ing on,  they  may  find  the  "blarsted  Britisher"  in  possession. 

But  we  must  return  from  this  digression.  It  seemed  strange 
that  the  people  should  hurry  in  this  fashion  from  the  race  course 
which  they  had  exhibited-such  a  determined  wish  to  reach.  It 
appeared  almost  incredible  that  so  many  persons  could  have  taken 
the  trouble  and  incurred  the  expense  of  traveling  nineteen  miles, 
under  a  hot  sun  and  through  clouds  of  dust,  for  less  than  three 
minutes  enjoyment,  but  so  it  "was.  Tens  of  thousands  were  now 
leaving.  This  was  not  the  case  however,  with  "the  mass."  "The 
million"  held  on,  for  they  avail  themselves  of  the  annual  return  of 
the  Derby  to  have  a  country  frolic  and  inflate  their  lungs  with  pure 
air,  which  they  call  their  champagne.  No  sentiment  is  more  uni- 
versal with  our  English  ancestors  than  a  thorough,  genuine  love  oi 
the  country.  On  every  occasion  they  fly  feo  it,  and  when  they  re- 
tire from  the  pursuits  of  the  world  it  is  always  to  the  country,  the 
peaceful  scenes  of  the  country.  They  rightly  think  that  this  19 
the  only  way  of  securing  when  young  the  highest  mental  and  phys- 
ical development,  the  ''sana  nie7is  m  sana  corporey  and  when  old 
the  calm  repose  suited  to  age.  No  passion  to  the  F^nglish  seems 
so  universal  as  that  for  the  race,  which  is  one  of  Englands's  most 
ancient  and  popular  amusements.  It  is  not  only  an  amusement  in 
which  everybody  participates,  but  a  science  by  which  thousands 
make  a  support  while  others  are  ruined.  Racing  of  some  kind, 
has  been  from  the  earliest  days  one  of  the  most  popular  sports  of 
the  British  people.  Foot  races  were  common  before  the  Roman 
invasion,  afterwards  chariot  races  were  introduced  and  mithraie 
festivities  were  practiced  in  many  parts  of  the,  country.  At  this 
period  racing  with  horses  after  the  custom  of  the  Romans  without 
riders  was  also  practised. .  Mounted  races  came  in  with  the  Anglo 
Saxons  and  during  the  ages  when  a  man  who  could  read  and  writq 
was  considered  an  effeminate  milk  sop,  only  fit  to  be  a  clerk  of  a 
priest,  it  was  usual  for  knights  and  gentlemen  to  ride  their  own  horse;?. 


158  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

During  the  reig:ns  of  Queen  Elizabeth  and  James  I,  both  of 
whom  were  good  judges  of  horse  flesh  and  addicted  to  the  turf,  it 
was  patronized  as  now  by  the  royal  family  and  the  nobility,  or  in 
a  word  the  fashionable  world.  It  was  not  uncommon  at  that  pe- 
riod, nor  is  it  now,  for  young  gentlemen  to  ride  their  own  horses 
at  a  match.  The  writer  often  saw  them  do  so  during  his  sojourn 
in  England.  The  turf  was  in  a  flourishing  condition  and 
so  continues,  as  everything  in  England  n^jst  be  upon  which 
the  ton  smiles  and  lavishes  its  gold.  Meetings  regularly 
took  place  in  Yorkshire  and  Surrey,  at  Endfield  Chase  and  nu- 
merous other  places  During  the  reign  of  James  I,  the  turf  first 
assumed  systematic  dress  and  was  scientifically  and  methodically 
conducted.  This  national  sport  flourished  with  fresh  vigor  under 
ihe  "Merrie  Monarch  Charles,"  who  established  a  Royal  stud  and 
spent  large  sums  in  bringing  the  breed  of  horses  to  perfection. — 
He  subscribed  plate  to  be  run  for  at  all  the  meetings,  entered  his 
horse  in  his  own  name,  and  was  arbiter  of  jockey  club  disputes. 
It  has  from  that  period  maintained  the  first  place  among  British 
sports  and  has  superceded  and  taken  the  place  of  the  jousts  and 
tournaments  of  the  olden  day. 

Racing  is  nowhere  so  popular  or  so  much  supported  as  in  Eng- 
land. This  is  seen  in  the  inns  and  public  houses,  in  the  prints 
which  adorn  the  walls  of  races,  racers  and  jockeys,  and  in  this 
year  of  grace,  1880,  a  turf  club  has  been  opened  m  the  West  end, 
patronized  by  Viscount  Mandeville,  M.  P.,  son  of  the  Duke  of 
Manchester,  and  the  leading  nobility,  to  which  Americans  of  dis- 
tinction are  admitted  t6  membership,  provided  their  tastes  are 
"horsey."  This  is  the  result  the  Ten  Broeks  and  P.  Lorilard's 
efforts  to  prove,  as  they  have  pretty  conclusively  done,  that  the 
American  bred  horse  is  superior  in  speed  and  bottom  to  his  En- 
glish sire.  This  is  equally  true  of  cattle,  and  within  a  few  years 
cattle  bred  and  reared  in  New  York  from  English  stock  have  been 
sold  at  enormous  sums  to  be  taken  back  with  a  view  to  the  im- 
provement of  the  original  race.  The  effect  of  the  American  cli- 
mate is  seen  even  more  plainly,  according  to  the  testimony  of 
many  northern  authorities,  in  the  superior  physique  of  the  Amer- 
ican born  and  bred  descendants  of  English  and  other  European 
ancestors.  The  average  American,  whether  originally  sprung 
from  the  English,  Irish,  German  or  Swede,  is  said  to  be  taller,  with 
a  deeper  chest,  broader  shoulders  and  fuller  muscular  develop 
ment,  greater  activity  and  more  energy  and  endurance  than  his 
European  progenitor.  While  this,  if  true,  is  mainly  due  to  our 
fine  climate,  it  may  in  part  be  attributed  to  the  abundant,  varied 
and  satisfactory  character  of  our  food  supply,  and  the  further  fact 
that  marrying  in-and-in  is  very  rare  in  the  United  States,  while  the 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  159 

union  of  cousins  is  too  common  on  the  other  side  of  the  Atlantic. 
This  vicious  custom  has  been  carried  to  such  an  extent  in  some 
portions  of  Europe,  notably  in  the  Swiss  Cantons  and  the  Chan- 
nel Islands,  that  epilepsy,  imbecility,  idiocy  and  insanity  are  the 
characteristics  of  the  dwarfish  and  deformed  offsprings  of  certain 
families. 

An  apology  for  mixing  up  these  grave  matters  in  a  chapter  on 
the  Derbv,  may  be  found  in  the  words  of  Shaftesbury :  "If,  whilst 
they  profess  only  to  please,  they  secretly  advise  and  give  instruc- 
tion, they  may  now,  perhaps,  as  well  as  formerly,  be  esteemed  with 
justice  the  best  and  most  honorable  among  authors." 

But  to  proceed.  VVe  need  not  discourse  on  the  Englishman's  love 
of  the  horse.  It  is  known  the  world  over.  He  treats  his  horse  like 
his  best  friend,  his  second  self,  and  not  unfrequently  consigns  him 
to  an  honored  grave.  During  the  latter  part  of  the  last  century, 
the  celebrated  racer  Eclipse,  who  won  ^25,000  for  his  owner,  dy- 
ing at  the  age  of  twenty  five,  was  buried  instate,  bitter  ale  and  hot 
buns  being  distributed  to  the  mourners,  who  mourned  most,  we 
imagined,  that  such  scenes  occured  so  seldom.  Eclipse's  heart 
had  been  previously  taken  out  and  was  found  to  be  of  extraordi- 
nary size,  which  satisfactorily  accounted,  as  the  mourners  fancied, 
for  the  many  noble  qualities  and  the  great  success  of  the  lament- 
ed steed. 

The  passion  for  the  race  is,  as  we  have  said,  universal,  possess- 
ing all  ranks  and  conditions,  and  strange  to  say,  if  possible,  more 
intense  with  the  women  than  the  men.  The  ladies  attended  the 
races  in  great  numbers,  and  have  been  known  to  ride  at  them. — 
One  of  these  female  riders  was  the  wife  of  a  Colonel  Thornton, 
and  evidently  his  better  half.  In  1804  she  rode  a  match  on  which 
;£200,ooo  were  depending,  and  with  so  much  success  that  she  en- 
tered the  arena  again  in  1805  against  a  celebrated  jockey  by  the 
name  of  Buckley,  and  beat  him.  The  fair  equestrienne  was  not 
only  an  accomplished  rider  but  something  of  a  poet  or  poetaster, 
and  has  left  some  lively  rhymes  in  which  she  apostrophised  the 
delightful  sensations  of  a  match.  Ladies  do  not  now  play  jockey, 
but  still  lend  their  countenance  to  the  turf.  Petticoats  are  interdict- 
ed by  the  by-laws  of  the  jockey  clubs,  not  to  say  by  an  improve- 
ment in  the  public  taste,  but  the  fair  sex  has  by  no  means  abandon- 
ed that  department  of  the  fine  arts  connected  with  horse  flesh. — 
Often  of  an  afternoon  we  have  admired  the  beautiful  creatures  su- 
perbly mounted,  careening  through  Rotten  Row.  Their  success 
in  this  Olympic  exercise  is  so  remarkable  that  the  most  vicious 
colts  are  often  surrendered  to  their  management.  They  are  there- 
fore sometimes  called  "pretty  horse  breakers." 

Races  are  now  held  in  more  than  a  hundred  and  twenty  places 


l6o  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 

in  England,  the  most  important  of  which  are  Epsom  Ascot,  York, 
Dorcaster  and  New  Market,  at  the  latter  of  which  places  between 
four  and  five  hundred  horses  are  in  constant  training.  Ascot  and 
New  Market  are  attended  by  the  most  select  company,  among 
whom  is  the  Queen,  and  the  meetings  are  conducted  without  the 
serious  drawbacks  which  detract  so  much  from  those  of  other  lo- 
calities, such  as  Epsom  where  the  attendance  is  rarely  less  than 
150.000. 

The  Derby  and  Oaks  were  instituted  by  an  earl  of  Derby  near 
a  century  ago  and  the  Derby  day  is  now  regarded  as  a  great  na- 
tional carni\al,  in  fact  the  University  boat  race  and  the  Derby  are 
the  only  great  annual  festivals  of  the  people.  Both  Houses  of 
Parliament  adjourn  for  the  Derby  and  it  is  attended  by  the  Royal 
family,  the  nobility,  by  statesmen,  tory  and  radical,  the  ministry, 
by  judges  and  lawyers,  historians,  poets,  novel  writers  and  journal- 
ists, the  aristocracy  of  birth  and  intellect  as  well  as  by  every  other 
class  of  the  community,  high  and  low,  rich  and  poor.  The  "Oaks"' 
is  more  slimly  attended  and  principally  by  that  portion  of  the  com- 
munity which  sports  the  title  of  "fashionable,"  though  the  usual 
per  centum  of  rogues  and  blacklegs  are  always  on  hand. 


CHAPTER  XV. 


DOVER— FASHIONABLE   SOCIETY    ON    THE   SEA     SIDE  — THE     PAST 
ANP   PRESENT — DANGERS   ON   THE   OLD   ROAD. 


We  do  not  remember  to  have  seen  in  England  such  a  succession 
of  fair  days,  so  little  rain  and  humidity  in  the  atmosphere,  so  much 
genial  sunshine  and  so  much  balmy  air  as  during  the  autumn  it 
was  our  good  fortune  to  visit  Dover  and  the  southeastern  counties. 
Every  traveler  will  understand  the  additional  zest  witli  which  the 
sight-seer  follows  his  vocation  with  the  accompaniments  of  good 
health  and  good  weather,  which  area  sufficient  guarantee  for  good 
spirits. 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENSES.  l6l 

Before  reaching  Dover,  lodgings  had  been  secured  for  us  by  a 
London  friend  in  Marine  Parade,  a  pretty  little  terrace  of  lath  and 
plaster  villas  (senii-delached)  extendins:  round  the  north  shore  of 
the  bay.  Behind  was  the  town,  flanked  by  towering  chalk  cliffs^ 
and  in  front  the  dark  blue  sea.  Pleasure  and  fishing  boats,  with 
the  Ijusy  groups  belonging  to  them,  filled  the  beach  from  early 
morning  to  sunset,  and  on  the  channel  were  vessels  of  all  sizes  and 
nations — steam  packets  also  arrived  several  times  during  the  day 
from  Calais,  ai-d  enlivened  the  scene  by  landing  their  crowds  of 
passengers.  Marine  Parade  had  long  since  come  in  vogue  as  a 
summer  residence  for  invalids,  for  fashionable  idlers,  for  gay  Lo- 
tharios and  wanton  women,  for  all  who  wished  to  recommend 
themselves  to  notice  by  their  dress,  their  air,  and  their  civilities, 
and  its  villas  during  the  season  were  rarely  untenanted.  Visitor^ 
always  sought  lodgings  fronting  the  parade,  where  they  perpetually 
enjoyed  sea  views  and  sea  air  within  convenient  distance  of  bath- 
ing machines.  Our  friend  finding  one  of  these  villas  vacant,  took 
it  for  us  and  we  found  ourselves  moored  between  two  maiden  gen- 
tlewomen, occupying  the  adjoining  villa  to  the  north,  and  a  bilious 
looking  Indian  officer,  on  half  pay,  on  the  south.  The  fashiona- 
ble promenade  was  a  long,  wide  and  smooth  walk  between  the 
village  and  the  sea  and  at  certain  hours  all  the  world  of  Dover 
assembled  there  to  listen  to  the  band,  to  see  and  be  seen.  Those 
whom  gout  or  'fastidiousness"  kept  from  touching  mother  earth 
with  their  dainty  boots,  sat  in  their  bay  windows,  readv  to  greet 
with  smiles  and  recognitions  their  less  squeamish  acquaintances. 
This  was  a  pleasant  peculiarity  of  the  terrace.  There  was  anoth- 
er— the  end  of  a  blunderbuss  telescope  protuded,  in  pleasant 
weather,  from  almost  every  window.  As  the  afternoon  hour 
of  4  o'clock  approached,  one  could  see  the  straggling  haut  fon, 
wending  their  way  to'the  walk  for  the  ostensible  purpose  of  en- 
joying "a  constitutional."  Though  these  devotees  to  pleasure  had 
in  a  measure  slept  off  the  effects  of  the  previous  night's  dissipation 
and  fortified  themselves  with  "bitters,"  they  for  the  most  part  ap- 
peared jaded,  heavy,  wearied.  For  ourselves,  we  generally  visited 
this  scene  about  five  o'clock,  when  all  of  Dover,  ill  and  well,  grave 
and  gay,  lively  and  severe,  was  on  the  tramp.  The  citadel  offi- 
cers, in  their  gay  uniforms,  mustered  in  strong  force,  and  eyed 
with  profound  interest  the  new  comers  of  the  softer  sex. 

These  Machiavelian  bucks  soon  knew  who  the  late  arrivals  were, 
where  they  were  from  and  what  they  were  worth.  Whether  they 
were  heiresses  or  co-heiresses,  wards  in  chancery  or  under  the  pro- 
tection of  pater  fa77iil las.  If  so  unfortunate  as  to  have  a  father, 
his  age  and  bodily  condition  were  soon  as  well  known  to  them  as 
to  the  medical  adviser  of  a  life  association,  and  it  was  certain  to  be 


l62  RAMBLING     REMINISCENSES. 

discussed  how,  when  the  old  fellow  was  gone,  "he  would  cut  up." 
This  Was  the  slani^  phrase,  the  true  ineanint^  of  which  is,  will  his 
iestate,  when  divided,  leave  a  handsome  penny  to  one  and  all  of 
his  ofirsprin.[>s.  If  a  pretty  widow  appeared  it  was  quickly  ascer- 
,  tained  what  was  her  "jointure,"  and  whether  she  was  encumbered 
With  "kids"  (i.  e.  children)  or  was  all  forlorn.  Dover  in  the  "sea- 
Son"  is  indeed,  to  make  short  of  a  long  story,  a  lion's  den.  full  of 
pitfalls,  sunken  rocks,  snags  and  shoals,  gins  and  springs  set  by 
the  fortune  hunting  fraternity.  During  the  forenoon  the  prome- 
nade was  deserted  except  by  limp  and  smeary  children  dancing  to 
the  music  of  the  organ  grinder,  a  half  dozen  workmen  arranging 
the  stand  for  the  afternoon  band,  or  making  arrangements  on  gala 
days  for  a  pyrotechnic  display  of  colored  tires;  a  few  lank  and 
^eary  female  forms  flitted  to  and  fro  between  the  Terrace  and 
bathing  machines,  and  a  crowd  of  gossiping  laundresses,  fisher- 
tnen  and  seedy  looking  sailors,  who  lounged  about  the  sands, 
smoking  clay  pipes  and  spinning  yarns.  The  parade  only  burst 
in  all  its  glories  in  the  post  meridian  hours. 

Among  the  afternoon  habitues  of  the  mall  were  our  neighbors 
the  two  gentlewomen  and  the  bilious  officer.  They  had  struck  up 
acquaintance  with  us  by  reason  of  our  close  proximity.  Every- 
body at  Dover  is  on  the  lookout  for  eligible  "connections,"  anxious 
to  increase  their  social  circle.  The  cheerful  ladies  always  walked 
forth,  each  having  in  leading  strings  a  sore  eyed  dog.  This  is  one 
way  in  which  the  stranger  recognizes  that  he  is  in  a  fashionable 
Community  ;  it  is  entirely  a  la  mode  for  a  single  woman  to  sport  a 
poodle.  Another  way  is  to  ascertain  if  the  people  have  music 
with  their  meals.  This  is  quite  the  oriental  flourish  adopted  by 
aspirants  for  the  beau  vwide.  Establishing  themselves  on  wire 
bottomed  chairs  our  maiden  gentlewomen  passed  the  afternoon 
dividing  their  attention  between  their  canine  pets  and  the  company. 
They  seemed  to  lay  in  wait  of  game,  with  a  view  to  charitable 
Comment  on  any  obnoxious  looking  individual,  such  as  the  gentle- 
man with  the  diseased  liver,  who  might  appear.  By  these  vener- 
able lassies  such  a  blade  was  always  supposed  to  have  designs  on 
ihem,  and  was  pronounced  a  dangerous  man.  The  Indian  officer, 
whose  long  acquaintance  with  jungles  enabled  him  instinctively  to 
scent  the  presence  of  an  enemy,  took  pains  to  locate  him.self  as 
far  as  possible  from  his  wily  neighbors.  It  was  quite  apparent  to 
the  casual  observer,  that  however  unsafe  he  might  be,  at  times  and 
on  occasions,  the  damsels  were  in  no  immediate  danger  from  him. 

In  Parade  villas,  as  we  have  said,  we  took  lodgings  and  found 
ourselves  in  the  midst  of  this  kind  of  a  promiscuous  and  would 
be  world  of  fishion.  Much  amusement  we  might  undoubtedly 
have  derived  from  a  study  of  life  on  the  sands,  but  our   time   and 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  163 

plans  did  not  admit  of  such  delectable  dissipation.  The  town  and 
neio^hhorhood  presented  many  obj-^cts  of  interest  and  with  these 
we  busied  ourselves  more  a^^reeably  if  not  more  profitably.  For 
the  best  part  of  the  time,  we  i^ave  the  <ro  by  to  the  seethin^j  mass 
of  humanity  elbowin</  their  way  up  and  down  the  pathway  and 
around  the  band  of  H.  M.  24th  f )ot.  (This  is  the  iil-fited  re^ri- 
nient  which  lost  850  men  at  Isandula,  Zululand,  in  1879.)  After 
the  fatigues  of  a  well  spent  day  si^rht  seeintr  and  a  four  o'clock 
dinner,  we  frequently  sauntered  forth  to  the  promenade  to  take  a 
peep  at  vice  and  folly  throuoh  the  fumes  of  ourci^ar.  The  Lieut, 
Colonel  commanding  the  24th  Regiment,  George  Vincent  VVatson 
and  his  family  were  old  friends,  and  much  of  our  spare  time  was 
spent  with  them.  We  often  dined  en  ^arcoyi  at  the  mess  of  the 
24th  and  concluded  the  evening  with  a  rubber.  To  Col. Watson  and 
the  officers  of  the  24th  and  the  Artillery  commanded  by  another 
old  iriend.  Col.  Singleton,  we  were  indebted  for  much  hospitality. 
They  supplied  us  too,  with  a  deal  of  information  as  to  the 
leading  people  then  in  Dover.  Among  them  we  soon  discovered 
our  old  Iriends.Sir  Henry  de  F^oghton  and  Lady  Eardley  whose 
flirtation  was  still  kept  up  with  undiminished  ardor.  Miss  Maria 
Turner,  author  of  "The  Garden  of  the  Lord"  &c.,  John  Fradgley, 
one  of  the  principal  officers  of  the  Bank  of  England,  Captain  E. 
Newstead  Falkner,  late  of  H.  M.  30th  foot,  H.  R.  Fox  Bourne, 
author  of  "The  Lives  of  British  Merchants"  and  many  others.. — 
The  first  few  days  of  our  sojourn  in  Dover  were  occupied  with  an 
examination  of  its  ancient  ruins  of  Roman,  Saxon  and  Norman 
origin,  and  we  entered  upon  the  work  with  the  zeal  of  a  discoverer, 
notwithstanding  our  misgivings  as  to  the  value  of  much  tradition- 
ary lore.  Rich  as  is  Dover  in  these  memorials  of  other  days,  it  is 
richer  in  its  objects  of  present  interest,  and  what  with  seeing  the 
piers  and  jetties,  the  military  works,  the  forts  and  harbors,  its  civil 
halls  and  church  edifices,  its  muijeums  and  picture  galleries  and 
its  lovely  environs,  we  had  little  time  while  in  our  "Cottage  by  the 
sea"  for  anything  else.  From  our  lodgings  it  was  but  a  half  hour's 
walk  to  the  summit  (from  300  to  400  feet  high)  of  the  cliffs  north 
of  town.  Upon  these  stand  the  renowned  Dover  Castle.  It  is 
said,  by  antiquarians,  of  course,  to  occupy  the  spot  of  a  Roman 
fortress.  Be  this  as  it  may,  it  is  well  known  that  shortly  after  the 
Roman  legions  were  withdrawn,  it  was  strongly  fortified  by  the 
Saxons,  afterwards  by  the  Normans,  and  has  ever  since  been  re- 
garded as  one  of  England's  strongholds,  in  fact,  the  English  Gib- 
ralter.  Walking  round  the  ramparts,  Col.  Watson  pointed  out 
the  French  coast  which  could  be  dimly  seen  without  a  glass.  From 
this  point  Queen  Elizabeth's  pocket  piece,  so  tradition  says,  once 
threw  a  ball  to  the  opposite  shore,  a  distance  of  twenty-one  miles. 


164  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

This  beautiful  piece  of  brass  ordnance  was  cast  at  Utrecht  in  1544, 
and  was  presented  by  the  States  of  Holland  to  the  potent  Queen 
Bess.  The  exterior  is  ornamented  with  various  figures  typical  of 
the  blessings  of  peace  and  the  horrors  of  war,  and  bears  a  Flemish 
inscription  of  which  the  following  is  a  translation  :  , 

"O'er  hill  and  dale  l  throw  niy  ball. 
Breaker  my  name  of  mound  and  wall." 

The  Flemish  language  having  died  out  in  England,  this  inscrip- 
tion has  been  variously  translated.  In  the  language  of  the  cock- 
ney, it  is  thus  rendered  : 

"Load  nie  well  and  ram  me  dovyn, 
And  I'll  throw  a  ball  to  Calais  town," 

The  almost  inaccessible  natural  position  as  well  as  the  extensive 
works  render  the  castle  impregnable.  The  present  fortifications 
have  grown  up  in  successive  ages  and  consequently  offer  to  the 
eye  a  confusion  of  style  in  the  several  parts.  The  effect  of  the 
whole,  however,  is  picturesque  and  romantic.  Over  an  area  of 
forty  acres  can  be  traced  some  uninteligible  ruins  which  are  said 
to  be  the  remains  of  the  Roman,  Saxon  and  Norman  fortifications. 
Alter  the  battle  of  Hastings  the  castle  was  besieged  and  taken  by 
William  the  Norman.  The  castle  is  within  itself  one  of  the  most 
extensive  and  most  interesting  works  in  Europe.  Froiri  it  the 
views  are  unsurpassed.  To  the  west  the  eye  wanders  over  the 
VaHey  of  the  Dour,  through  which  runs  the  London  turnpike 
road,  until  the  view  is  intercepted  by  a  range  of  hills  ;  to  the  north 
the  prospect  takes  in  the  "North  Foreland,''  the  Isle  of  Thanet, 
Ramsgate,  the  Downs,  Caltis  and  the  French  coast  to  and  beyond 
Boulogne.  In  clear  weather,  the  fields,  houses  and  a  wide  extent 
of  country  are  seen  in  the  Pas  dc  Cains  and  even  the  celebrated 
monument  erected  in  1805  by  the  grand  army^  at  Boulogne  to  the 
Emperor  Napoleon.  The  broad  expanse  of  water  in  the  downs  is 
constantly  enlivened  by  passing  vessels,  and  presents  such  a  vari- 
ety as  is  rarely  met  with. 

Here  we  shall  take  the  liberty  to  detain  the  reader  while  we 
mount  our  I:*egasbus  and  make  a  course  through  the  regions  of 
the  past. 

The  old  road  on  the  banks  of  the  Dour  was  formerly  the  high- 
way to  London,  and  became  very  familiar  to  us  at  a  subsequent 
period  when  we  traveled  on  it  part  of  the  way  to  the  metropolis. 
Though  Gibbon,  in  his  xxxi  chapter  remarks,  "There  exists  in 
human  nature  a  strong  propensity  to  depreciate  the  advantages, 
and  to  magnify  the  evils  of  the  present  time."  we  confess  while 
viewing  the  silent  and  deserted  inns  on  this  ancient  highway,  once 
so  full  of  life    and    activity,  that  they  aroused    many   suggestive 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  165 

thoughts  in  the  opposite  direction,  and  we  by  no  means  considered 
the  present  as  a  degenerate  age.  We  reflected  with  satisfaction, 
almost  gratitude,  upon  having  made  our  debut  into  the  world  amid 
the  wondrous  scenes  of  this  wide  awake,  progressive  age.  How 
much  better  and  happier  than  to  have  droned  away  a  sluggish  and 
half  fossilized  existence  in  the  "good  old"  medieval  times.  We 
realized,  as  such  thoughts  passed  through  our  mind,  that  it  was 
of  considerable  importance  when  a  man  was  born,  at  what  period 
he  comes  into  the  world.  It  was  something  to  have  lived  after  the 
advent  of  Me  Adam,  and  be  able  to  travel  in  a  stage  coach  with- 
out risk  of  life  or  limb,  even  if  still  liable  to  bruises  and  contusions. 
It  was  more  to  have  followed  Fulton  and  the  steam  engine ;  to  have 
appeared  on  the  theatre  of  the  world  after  the  introduction  of  tel- 
egraphy, and  when  gas  had  paled  the  ineffectual  fires  of  the  blink 
ing,  twinkling,  stinking  lamp,  which  at  the  best  only  made  dark- 
ness visible,  and  since  coal  oil  has  come  in,  onl^'  this  up  to  the 
time  when  the  pent  up  combustible  vents  itself  in  some  disastrous 
explosion.  We  experience  not  the  slightest  wish,  however  our 
mind  might  sometimes  dwell  with  delight  upon  the  past,  as  afford- 
ing in  some  respects  more  real  happiness  than  the  present,  to  have 
back  the  past  with  only  the  things  of  the  past.  We  must  conclude 
then  that  experience  had  in  our  case  corrected  that  "propensity  to 
depreciate"  alluded  to  by  the  great  historian  as  we  think  it  will  in 
all  cases  when  mingled  with  a  little  sober  cogitation. 

When  from  time  to  time  we  have  dipped  into  antiquarian  lore, 
of  that  veracious  kind  which  challenges  our  respect  in  this  severe 
matter  of  fact  age,  in  which  so  many  cherished  historical  delusions 
have  been  destroyed,  we  have  been  not  only  amused  but  deeply 
interested  with  the  accounts  given  by  those  grave,  quaint  men  of 
the  olden  time  of  the  misfortunes  and  adversities  of  their  days. 
One  of  these  relates  how  he  was  in  danger  of  losing  his  way  in 
the  ancient  north  road,  one  of  the  best  in  the  Kingdom,  and  how 
he  actually  did  lose  himself  between  York  and  Dorcaster.  An- 
other tells  how  in  traveling  with  his  wife  in  his  own  carriage,  he 
twice  lost  his  way  in  one  short  tour,  and  on  the  second  occasion 
narrowly  escaped  the  penance  of  passing  a  comfortless  night  on 
Salisbury  Plain.  In  those  days  the  condition  of  the  roads  was 
frightful,  and  travelers  in  bad  weather  were  often  delayed  for 
weeks  together.  Sometimes  the  floods  were  so  deep  and  impet- 
uous that  wayfarers  had  to  swim  for  their  lives,  while  the  weak 
and  inexpert  were  swept  away.  Thoresby  relates  that  in  the 
course  of  one  of  his  journeys  he  with  difficulty  escaped  drowning 
by  an  inundation  of  the  Prent.  He  was  afterwards  detained  at 
Stamford  four  days  on  account  of  the  state  ol  the  roads,  and  then 
was  extricated  from  his  position  only  by  a  company  of  fourteen 


(ao^ 


l66  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

members  of  the  House  of  Commons,  attended  by  competent 
g^uides,  and  who  compassionately  took  him  in  tow.  In  1685  the 
Viceroy  on  his  way  to  Ireland  was  borne  through  Wales  in  a 
litter,  while  his  carriage,  which  had  been  taken  to  pieces,  was  con- 
veyed on  the  shoulders  of  Welsh  peasants  to  the  seashore. 

In  those  days  it  was  the  custom,  before  setting  out  upon  this 
pld  turnpike  road  or  indeed  upon  any  of  those  roads  leading  from 
the  country  to  the  metropolis,  to  canvass  the  matter  for  months  in 
anticipation  and  to  spend  weeks  in  anxious  preparation  for  the 
event.  Tender  farewells  were  taken  of  friends  and  neighbors,  a 
will  was  made  and  duly  signed,  sealed  and  delivered  with  all  the 
solemnities  of  a  death  bed  testament.  Thus  says  Evlyn's  diary  : 
"Paris,  June  27th,  1650.  I  made  my  will,  and  taking  leave  of  my 
wife  and  other  friends,  took  horse  for  England."  The  intending 
traveler's  midnight  dreams  were  haunted  by  visions  of  disaster, 
robbery  and  death  ;  and  his  days  rendered  hideous  by  the  lurid 
gloom  which  coming  events  cast  over  them.  If  he  had  survived 
these  and  the  day  of  departure  arrived,  his  remaining  resolution 
was  broken  down  by  the  parting  scene — the  wife  hanging  upon 
his  neck,  the  children  clinging  to  his  knees  and  the  sorrowful 
neighbors  gathering  to  take  a  last  look  at  their  adventurous  friend. 

Foissart  gives  an  account  of  a  journey  accomplished  by  the 
mother  of  Richard  II,  who  at  the  time  of  Wat  Tyler's  insurrec- 
tion in  1380,  came  in  one  day  from  Canterbury  to  London,  for 
"she  never  durst  tarry  on  the  way." 

Of  course  this  event  would  not  have  been  chronicled  but  it  was 
considered  a  surprisino  achievement,  though  performed  with  the 
aid  of  all  the  resources  of  Royalty  and  on  one  of  the  best  roads  in 
England.  A  good  idea  may  be  formed  of  the  general  insecurity 
of  traveling  in  those  days  by  an  account  of  the  expense  of  trans- 
porting ;^i,ooo  to  Prince  Edward  the  I,  in  1301.  The 
treasure  was  brought  to  London  by  two  knights  on  horseback, 
attended  by  sixteen  valets  on  foot.  It  was  not  sufficient,  however, 
that  the  money  should  be  protected  by  men-at-arms.  In  the  ab- 
sence of  hotels,  excepting  in  towns,  it  was  necessary  to  secure  the 
guards  from  hunger.  They  were  therefore  accompanied  by  two 
cooks,  whose  duty  it  was  to  provide  a  "safe  lodging"  daily  for 
the  money,  and  to  attend  to  the  gastronomic  wants  of  its  con- 
ductors. One  of  them,  after  having  accompanied  the  escort  two 
days'  journey  between  Chester  and  London,  spurred  on  to  the 
metropolis  to  herald  the  approach  of  the  money.  It  may  be  of 
interest  in  these  days  to  know  how  these  ^1,000  all  in  silver  were 
conveyed  to  their  destination.  In  the  first  place,  ten  panniers 
"wherein  to  truss  the  money,"  and  cords  wherewith  to  tie  them, 
were  provided,  with  cost  4s.,  gd.     Then  these  ten  panniers  were 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  167 

put  across  the  backs  of  five  hackneys,  supplied  of  course  by  the 
companies  of  hackney  men  established  alono[  the  road.  It  took 
the  j^uard  eight  days  to  arrive  in  London  with  the  heavy  weight, 
and  six  days  to  return  to  Chester  without  it.  The  knights  each 
received  one  shilling  a  day  ;  and  each  valet  was  well  paid,  at  a 
third  of  the  same  stipend.  The  cooks  had  each  two  pence  a 
day  ;  but  the  one  who  was  in  the  prince's  service  having  to  stay 
two  additional  days  in  London,  in  order  to  count  out  the  money 
to  the  treasurer,  received  two  shillings  extra.  The  cost  of  hiring 
the  five  hackneys  was  thirty  shillings  ;  and  the  total  expense  of 
conveying  the  money  in  question  was  £6,  19s.,  6d.,  currency  of 
that  day,  or  about  ^104,  i6s.,  in  modern  coin. 

More  than  two  days  were  required  for  the  journey  from  London 
to  Oxford  in  the  stage  coach,  in  the  reign  of  Charles  II,  a  dis- 
tance traversed  now  by  trains  in  less  than  two  hours.  When  in 
1703.  George,  Prince  of  Oenmark,  visited  the  stately  mansion  of 
Petworth  with  the  view  of  meeting  Charles  Hi  of  Spain,  he  was 
six  hours  in  making  the  last  nine  miles  of  the  journey.  The  car- 
riages were  frequently  up  set  and  injured  ;  and  one  of  the 
courtiers  in  giving  an  account  of  it,  said  that  he  never  once 
alighted,  except  when  the  coach  overturned  or  stuck  in  the  mud. 
The  roads  were  equally  dangerous  in  Virginia.  In  1662,  Col. 
Valentine  Peyton,  of  Nominy,  in  the  county  of  Westmoreland 
thus  speaks  in  his  last  will  and  testament,  'Being  about  to  take  a 
voyage  to  Jamestown,  and  knowing  the  life  of  man  to  be  uncer- 
tain, I  doe  make  this  my  last  will  and  testament." 

Thei^e  were,  however,  considered  the  minor  difficulties  and 
dangers  of  traveling  in  those  days.  The  country,  particularly  the 
neighborhood  of  highways,  was  infested  by  troops  of  robbers  and 
vagabonds.  Many  of  the  roads  were  so  insecure  that  armed 
knights  were  employed  to  scour  them  and  perform  the  duties  of 
the  modern  rural  police.  The  custom  at  present  in  Italy,  Spain 
and  Greece,  of  taking  rich  passengers  and  holding  them  until  a 
ransom  is  paid,  was  then  common  in  England.  The  great  terrors 
of  the  road  caused  merchants,  bishops,  monks,  lawyers,  literary 
men  and  others  to  travel  in  companies,  which  gave  rise  to 
Chaucer's  description  in  his  Cayiierbury  Pilgi'ims.  Such  in  a 
general  way  were  some  of  the  delights  of  traveling  in  early  days, 
and  cause  us  rather  to  felicitate  ourselves  upon  having  had  our 
lives  cast  in  modern  times.  Reflecting  over  the  pleasant  advan- 
tages we  now  enjoy  and  not  having  the  fear  of  Gibbon  before  our 
eyes,  we  gave  vent  to  our  animal  spirits  piping  the  following  lines  ; 
"What  one  has  done,  when  one  was  young, 

One  ne'er  will  do  again  ; 
In  former  days  we  went  by  coach. 
But  now  one  goes  by  train." 


l68  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 


CHAPTER  XVI  . 

DOVER— THE  CINQUE  PORTS  —  ANCIENT  CUSTOMS — WALMEK 
CASTLE— DEAL— DEATH  OF  THE  DUKE  OF  WELLINGTON — THE 
MIDDLE  AGE  OF  MONKS — RELIGIOUS  INTOLERANCE. 


But  to  return  from  this  digression.  The  castle  constitutes  the 
chief  defensive  work  on  the  north  of  Dover,  and  together  with 
minor  works  in  this  quarter,  and  the  series  of  fortifications  on  the 
hills  and  slopes  to  the  south,  defend  all  the  approaches  whether 
by  land  or  sea.  There  is  an  interesting  feature  and  peculiarity 
about  the  works  to  the  South  of  the  town,  namely,  a  winding  stair- 
case of  two  hundred  steps,  or  military  shaft  cut  vertically  through 
the  chalk  cliff,  thus  giving  ready  access  from  the  barracks  above 
to  the  town.  These  works  lie  near  the  celebrated  cliff,  called 
Shakespeare's  cliff,  which  the  great  dramatist  made  famous.  In 
Kin^  Lear,  Edgar  addressing  the  Earl  of  Gloucester,  gives  the 
celebrated  description,  beginning, 

"There  is  a  cliff,  whose  high  and  bending  head 
Looks  fearfully  on  the  confined  deep." 

History,  says  a  distinguished  essayist,  is  a  tissue  of  fables. 
There  is  no  reason  to  believe  that  any  one  page  in  any  one  his- 
tory extant,  exhibits  the  unvarnished  truth.  When  Sir  Walter 
Raleigh  wrote  his  history  of  the  world  he  was  a  prisoner  in  the 
Tower  of  London.  One  morning  he  heard  the  noise  of  a  vehe 
ment  contention  under  his  window,  but  he  could  neither  see  the 
combatants,  nor  distinguish  exactly  what  was  said.  One  person 
after  another  came  into  his  apartment,  ar.d  he  enquired  of  them 
the  nature  of  the  affray,  but  their  accounts  were  so  inconsistent 
that  he  found  himself  wholly  unable  to  arrive  at  the  truth  of  the 
story.  Sir  Walter's  reflection  on  this  was  obvious,  yet  acute. 
"What,"  said  he,  "can  I  not  make  myself  master  of  an  incident 
which  happened  an  hour  ago  under  my  window,  and  shall  I  im- 
agine I  can  truly  understand  the  history  of  Hannibal  and  Caesar." 
President  John  Adams  thus  expresses  himself  on  this  subject : 

"I  have  little  faith  in  history.  I  read  it  as  I  do  ro 
mance,  believing  what  is  probable  and  rejecting  what  I  must 
Thucydides,  Tacitus,  Livy,  Hume,  Robertson,  Gibbon,  Ray 
nal    and    Voltaire,  are  all  alike.     Our  American  history  for  thr 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENSES.  169 

last  fifty  years  is  already  as  much  corrupted   as  any  half  century 
of  ecclesiastical  history,  from  the  Council  of  Nice  to  the  restora- 
tion of  the  Inquisition  in  1815       If  I  were  to  write  a  history  of  the 
last  60  years,  as  the  facts  rest  in  my  memory,  and  according   to 
my  judgment,  and   under  the  oath  oi  pro  vcritate  historiarum 
mearuvi  deuni  ipsu^n  obtcstor.-a  hundred  writers  in  America,  France, 
England  and   Holland  would  immediately  appear,  and  call  me,  to 
myself  and  before  the  world,  a  gross  liar  and  a  perjured  villain.'' 
This  view  is  not  very  encouraging  and  would  seem  to  belie  the 
maxim  that  time  will  clear  up  all  obscurities.      Nevertheless   we 
will  venture  to  enter  into  some  of  the  received  particulars  of  the 
history  of  this  famous  old  sea  side  town.     If  not  fiction  they  pos- 
sess the  merit  of  being  equally  as  interesting.     Dover  is  the  prin- 
cipal of  the  maratime  towns  constituting  the  association  known  as 
"Cinque   Ports."     This  remarkable  fraternity,  so  intimately    con- 
nected with  the  coast  of  Kent  and  Sussex,  is  still  in  existence  after 
a  lapse  of  eight  centuries.     As  early,  if  not  earlier  than  the    Nor- 
man times,  Dovtr,  Sandwich,  Hythe,  Romney  and   Hastings    en- 
joyed peculiar  municipal  privileges,  granted  them  on  condition  that 
they  would  furnish  shipping  to  defend  the  Southern    coast   (Eng- 
land having  no  navy  then)  and  maintain  easy  communication  with 
the  continent  in  time  of  peace.     To  thein  were  afterwards    added 
Winchelsea,  Rye  and  Seaford.     William   the    Norman   separated 
the  civil  and  military  administration  of  these  ports  from  that  of  the 
rest  of  Kent  and  Sussex  and  placed   both  under  a  Lord   Warden, 
who  was  the  governor  of  these  havens  and  their  dependencies,  and 
had  the  authority  of  an  admiral  and  power  to  hold  a  court  of  ad- 
miralty and  courts  of  law  and  equity.     This  officer  resided  at  the 
castle  and  exercised  the  functions  of  Lord-Lieutenant,  sheriff  and 
cusios  rotoloiim  as  also  admiral  over  this    part    of  the   realm.     In 
the  course  of  time  the  .fraternity  was  enlarged  by  the  admission  of 
other  towns,  either  as  principals  or  members,  and  since  the  days  of 
William  I,  each  port  has  been  governed  by  Jurats  and  Barons,  in- 
stead of  aldermen  and  freemen  ;  the  difference  being   not    merely 
in  name,  but  in  some  of  the  functions  also.     In  the  year  1347,  Sir 
Robert  Peyton,  second  baron  UfTord,  Earl   of  Suffolk    was   com- 
missioned by  Edward  III.,  Lord  High  Admiral   of  England,  and 
commanded  the  King's   whole  fleet    and  sailed   from   one   of  the 
Cinque  ports,  where  his  naval  armament  was  formed   and    equip- 
ped to  the  coasts  of  the  northern  powers,   and    only    returned    to 
serve  on  land  with  the  "black    prince"    at  the  battle  of  Poictiers 
where,  says  Burke,  "his  Lordship  achieved    the   highest    military 
renown  by  his  skill  as  a  leader  and  his    personal    courage   at   the 
head  of  his  troops."     The  founding  of  the  British  navy    and    the 
silting  up  of  many  of  the  harbors,  c  ombined  to  render  the  Cinque 


lyO  RAMBLING    REMINISCENSES. 

Ports  a  nullity  so  far  as  concerned  this  matter  ;  but  many  of  the 
old  political  and  municipal  privileges  and  usages  continue  to  exist. 
The  Cinque  system  may  now  be  regarded  as  a  curious  relic  of 
past  days,  retained  because  it  is  old  rather  than  because  it  is  of  any 
use.  The  Constable  of  Dover  Castle  for  the  time  being  is  Lord- 
Warden  of  the  Cinque  Ports  ;  the  clerk  of  the  Castle  is  under- 
sheriff  of  the  Cinque  ports,  and  these  two  functionaries  are  con- 
cerned in  the  holding  of  official  n)eetings  called  the  Courts  of 
Shepway,  the  Courts  of  Brotherhood  and  the  Courts  of  Guestling. 
The  Lord  Wardens,  (the  office  is  now  a  sinecure,)  no  longer  reside 
in  the  castle  but  during  the  period  when  in  Kent  fix  their  residence 
at  Walmer  Castle  about  seven  miles  north  of  Dover.  Prince  Al- 
bert was  for  many  years  and  up  to  the  period  of  his  death  Lord 
Warden.  Afterwards  Lord  Palmerston  was  appointed,  and  in 
1862  attended  at  Dover  and  held  sessions  of  the  three  courts  men- 
tioned, though  at  the  time  nearly  80  years  of  age  and  Prime  Min- 
ister. In  addition  to  the  use  of  the  castle  there  is  a  salary  of  ;^4,- 
000  per  annum  attached  to  this  now  useless  office. 

Upon  one  occasion  we  made  an  excursion  from  Dover  to  Wal- 
mer Castle  through  the  villages  of  Orkney  and  Ringwould.  Wal- 
mer Castle  is  an  object  of  much  interest  to  all  tourists,  not  only  as 
the  official  residence  of  the  Lord  Warden  of  the  Cinque  Ports,  and 
the  scene  of  the  last  hours  of  the  famous  Duke  of  Wellington, 
but  for  its  antiquity,  having  been  built  and  provided  with  a  moat 
and  drawbridge  by  Henry  VIII  in  1539.  We  were  surprised  to 
find  the  chief  part  of  the  moat  converted  into  a  garden,  and  look- 
ing far  more  picturesque  than  military.  In  other  respects  the 
grim  old  castle  is  now  intact,  and  at  the  period  of  our  visit  was  oc- 
cupied by  the  present  Lord  Warden,  Karl  Grosvenor.  During 
tjie  time  Mr.  Pitt  was  Prime  Minister,  he  was,  like  Lord  Palmer- 
ston. the  Lord  Warden  and  occasionally  spent  some  days  at  Wal- 
mer away  from  the  toils  of  business.  The  guide  shewed  us  a  room 
in  which  the  "heaven  born  minister"  and  Nelson  planned  some  of 
their  great  naval  schemes.  We  were  also  shown  the  room  in 
which  the  Duke  of  Wellington,  who  resided  two  months  every 
year  at  Walmer,  slept  upon  a  narrow  camp  bedstead  of  iron,  with 
a  straw  mattress  and  cotton  coverlet.  The  room  contained  no  oth- 
er furniture  beyond  a  camp  stool  and  an  iron  wash-hand  stand, 
with  a  small  looking  glass  affixed.  His  simple  tastes  and  his  hab- 
its as  a  soldier  caused  him  to  prefer  such  a  sleeping  room  to  the 
most  sumptuous  bed  chamber.  His  windows  looked  out  upon 
the  sea  and  a  door  admitted  him  to  the  ramparts,  where  he  walked 
for  two  hours  every  morning.  On  the  4th  of  September,  1852,  on 
his  iron  bedstead,  in  this  small,  plain  room,  the  hero  of  Waterloo 
expired,  having  near  him  his  son,  Lord  Charles  Wellesley,   pres- 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  fjl 

ent  Duke  of  Wellintrton,  an  apothecary  from  the  neighborin^r  town 
of  Deal,  and  the  household  domestics.  This  room  to  which  vis- 
itors are  now  admitted,  is  reverently  kept  with  as  litile  alteration 
as  possible.  The  i^^ardens  and  shrubbery  around  are  beautiful  and 
the  view  from  the  ramparts  over  the  sea,  wide  and  mao^nificent ; 
but  the  peculiar  interest  which  attaches  to  a  place,  like  Wahneris, 
at  least  for  ourselves,  its  old  associations.  We  imai^ine  there  is  no 
human  being  who  has  not  felt  the  magnetic  power  of  such  associa- 
tions. They  grow  with  our  growth  and  strengthen  with  our 
strength.  When  old  age  comes  creeping  on  and  the  pulse  rises 
slowly,  and  the  life  blood  runs  colder  from  the  heart,  and  the  limbs 
begin  to  fail  ;  when  the  visions  of  youth  and  the  hopes  of  early 
manhood  and  the  ambitions  of  maturer  years  are  obliterated  and 
annihilated,  when  the  grave  yawns  grimly  before,  and  the  thin 
white  hair  hardly  covering  the  shrunken  skull,  when  the  winter  of 
life  arrives,  then  are  these  associations  in  their  fullest  force,  and 
seem  to  say  that  winter  is  but  the  prelude  to  a  new  spring.  For- 
geting  the  events  of  yesterday,  the  old  man  sees  clear  and 
plain,  as  though  he  were  a  child  again,  the  old  haunts  and  the  old 
faces,  and  his  ears,  deaf  to  the  voices  around  him,  hear  old  famil- 
iar voices,  long  since  hushed  in  the  tomb.  The  barren  path  of 
age  winds  through  the  green  meniories  of  childhood,  recalling  at 
every  step,  old  thoughts,  dead  loves  and  perished  remembrances. 

This  effort  having  exhausted  our  rhetorical  powers,  this  hot 
weather,  let  us  return  from  whence  we  came,  to  wit,  to  VValmer, 
from  whence  we  proceeded,  on  the  beach,  to  the  famous  old  port 
of  Deal.  In  its  aspect  and  appearance  it  is  directly  the  opposite 
of  Dover.  There  are  no  hills  or  cliffs  at  this  part  of  the  coast,  but 
the  town  stands  upon  an  open  beach  fully  frontmg  the  sea.  The 
harbor  is  good  and  from  its  accessibility  it  has  long  been  provided 
with  works  as  a  guard  against  hostile  invasion.  In  the  reign  of 
Henry  VIII.,  Deal  and  Sandown  Castles  were  built  with  this  view. 
Both  have  abundance  of  draw  bridges,  round  towers  and  turrets. 
We  were  informed  by  a  friend  who  was  industriously  plying  us 
with  learned  lore,  that  in  the  seventeenth  century  one  Col.  Hen- 
derson was  long  confined  in  Sandown  Castle,  suspected  of  being  a 
regicide.  Our  considerate  friend  stopped  short  in  his  narrative, 
and  we  do  not  know  who  Col.  Henderson  was,  nor  do  we  know  in 
what  king's  blood  he  wished  to  imbue  his  hands.  But  as  one 
Charles  was  laying  his  head  upon  the  block  by  order  of  Crom- 
well about  this  time  and  the  other  was  a  refugee  among  the  Dutch 
at  the  Hague,  it  must  be  presumed  that  it  was  upon  one  or  the 
other  that  this  patriotic  and  blood-thirsty  member  of  the  Hender- 
son family  wished  to  vent  his  patriotism. 

On  our  return  to  Dover  we  stopped  three  miles  west  of  the  town 


172  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

long  enough  to  examine  the  ruins  of  St.  Radiguns,  "whose  mould- 
'ring  abbey  walls,  o'erhang  the  glade."  This  religious  house,  says 
the  guide  book,  and  we  never  fail  to  keep  this  faithful  friend  by  us 
and  to  occasionally  draw  inspiration  from  its  pages,  was  founded 
in  the  twelfth  century  for  the  Premonstratensians,  a  religious  order 
of  regular  Canons  or  Monks  of  Premontre,  instituted  in  the  twelfth 
century  in  the  Isle  of  France  by  Father  Norbet.  This  devoted 
man  is  better  known  to  history  than  Col.  Henderson,  and  when 
only  32  years  of  age  accompanied  the  Emperor  Henry  V  to  Rome, 
was  ordained  a  Priest  a  few  years  later,  founded  this  order  when 
40  years  of  age  ;  was  Archbishop  of  Magdeburg  six  years  sub- 
sequently, and  a  benefactor,  though  dead,  is  not  forgotten;  was 
canonized  by  Gregory  XHI,  four  hundred  and  forty  eight  years 
alter  his  death.  We  defy  the  critics  to  find  any  of  this  precise 
and  we  may  add  interesting,  not  to  say  recondite  historical  infor- 
mation in  the  guide  book.  Let  them  search  its  pages,  however  in- 
dustriously, hold  fast  the  volume  with  a  tight  grip,  turn  over  the 
leaves  with  nerv^nis  twitching  fingers,  stretch  every  muscle  of  the 
brain  to  the  fullest  extent,  until  the  veins  start  out  upon  their  brows 
and  their  eyes  grow  dim,  and  they  will  find  nothing  of  it  in  th( 
cockneys'  road  book.  We  chuckle  at  gaining  this  advantage  ovei 
those  carping,  fault  finding,  overwise  (in  their  own  conceit)  fellows, 
at  mystifying  the  Shank's  mare  peripatetic,  who  only  from  the  itin- 
erary, and  at  the  same  time  gaining  favor  with  our  reader  by  giv- 
ing him  some  evidence  that  we  possess  a  little  solid  historical 
knowledge.  Thus  entrenched  in  the  good  opinion  of  our  reader, 
he  will  travel  in  our  company,  with  a  gratifying  sense  of  security, 
though  we  say  it  who  should  not.  He  will  soon  learn  that  he  i> 
not  going  to  be  deceived  with  legends,  fables  and  such  like  ro- 
mance, but  be  supplied  with  the  sound  pabulum  of  the  historic 
muse.  His  guide,  philosopher  and  friend  may  at  times  be  a  littlt 
discursive,  but  the  reader  is  advised  to  cultivate  the  belief  that  hv 
knows  how  to  handle  a  subject,  how  to  descend  to  pii-rticulars,  en 
ter  into  the  details  and  come  to  the  point,  as  he  has  evidently  done 
in  the  case  of  Archbishop  Norbet,  with  the  most  gratifying  success. 
To  be  serious,  and  to  return  to  the  main  subject.  This  Abbey 
was  founded  for  the  White  Canons  by  an  Earl  and  Countess— ev 
erything  must  be  started  in  England  by  a  Lord  or  Lady,  one  or 
both.  It  was  richly  endowed  in  the  reign  of  Edward  I.  Its  ab 
bots  were  summoned  to  Parliament,  and  in  1319  it  was  specially 
honored  by  a  visit  from  Edmund  II.  Important  hist(^rical  infor 
mation  to  be  sure,  cries  the  cynic  who  believes  that  all  human  af 
fairs  are  so  entangled  that  the  truth  cannot  be  told.  We  care  not 
to  be  driven  from  our  course  by  perverseness  of  this  nature  and 
shall  continue  with  our  history. 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  I73 

The  ruins  of  the  Abbey  are  extensive  and  the  walls  of  great 
thickness.  Many  fine  windows  and  doorways  of  elaborate  work- 
manship still  remain  in  tolerable  preservation.  Every  part  of  Eng- 
land can  lay  claim  to  these  traces  of  a  monastic  life  which  has  al- 
together passed  away  from  the  country.  There  is  scarcely  any 
portion  of  the  land  in  which  the  ruins  of  Abbeys,  monasteries  and 
priories  are  not  to  be  found,  lying  in  green,  sheltered  valleys,  or 
retired  among  the  hills,  rising  up  amid  the  fertile  champaign  coun- 
try, embosomed  in  majestic  trees  or  perched  upon  grey  promento- 
ries  looking  out  upon  the  sea.  Their  architecture  is  unexcelled  in 
modern  times.  They  were  great  builders  in  what  is  called  the 
"dark  ages."  But  the  monks  of  old  were  more  than  architects. — 
They  were  in  fact  the  only  literary  class  of  their  age.  They  were, 
the  repositories  of  all  art,  science  and  knowledge.  They  have 
handed  down  to  us  the  great  thoughts  of  the  ancients.  Whatever, 
there  was  of  morality  and  intelligence  in  their  day  they  represent-^ 
ed  In  the  midst  of  a  rude,  savage  epoch  these  monks  were  pav- 
ing the  way  for  the  rei^n  of  universal  justice.  In  the  midst  of  their 
religious  meditations  they  pursued  the  arts  of  industry  and  cultiva- 
ted science.  In  appreciating  the  civilization  of  our  times  it  is  only 
fair  to  do  justice  to  the  men  of  those  days.  The  lives  they  led, 
the  life  of  the  monastery,  is  unsuited  to  our  times.  It  is  the  duty 
of  religion  in  this  day  to  uplift  and  elevate  the  mass,  to  ameliorate 
the  lot  of  all  who  toil,  to  work  out  a  daily  practical  result.  It  can- 
not fulfil  its  mission  in  our  day  and  generation  living  apart  from 
the  world  engaged  in  abstract  meditations. 

The  acute  Hallam,  in  his  "Middle  Ages,''  very  truly  observes 
that  the  sole  hope  for  classical  literature  depended  on  the  Latin 
language  which  would  probably  have  been  lost  if  three  circum- 
stances had  not  combined  to  maintain  it,  viz.,  the  papal  supremacy, 
the  monastic  institutions,  and  the  use  of  the  Latin  liturgy. — 
Through  the  first,  a  contmued  intercourse  was  maintained  between 
Rome  and  the  several  nations  of  Europe,  so  that  a  common  lan- 
guage became  necessary.  The  parochial  clergy  were  very  igno- 
rent,  and  the  little  learning  that  existed  was  among  the  monks, 
whose  monasteries  served  as  secure  repositories  for  the  books  anqj 
MSS.,  which  could  scarcely  have  descended  to  us  by  any  other 
channel.  Thus  Papacy  and  its  concomitants,  which  Protestants 
are  accustomed  to  condemn,  were  eventually  of  the  utmost  advan- 
tage to  learning,  and  to  the  establishment  of  a  more  liberal  Chris- 
tianity. 

These  are  facts,  and  facts  are  stubborn  things.  If  they  teach  noth- 
ing else,  they  teach  that  the  world  owes  a  debt  of  gratitude  to  the 
Roman  Catholics  for  the  preservation  of  the  learned  treasures  of 
Rome  and  Athens  and  whatever  vast   influence   they    may  have 


174  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

exerted  upon  mankind.  In  view  of  the  oblig^ations  the  world  owes 
to  the  Papacy,  it  seems  strange  that  the  bitterness  of  rehgious  big- 
otry and  intolerance  should  be  so  persistently  directed  towards 
both  high  and  low  in  the  only  church  which  existed  for  over  1500 
of  the  1879  years  which  have  passed  away  since  the  birth  of  Christ ; 
that  the  Priests  should  often  be  represented  as  beings  without  hu- 
man tastes  whatever  may  be  their  inner  religious  convictions,  and 
the  Pope  himself  be  held  up  to  the  world  as  if  he  were  all  that  is 
bad,  the  embodiment  of  evil  and  the  worst  foe  of  the  gospel  — 
This  is  not  very  fair  nor  will  it  have  much  effect  in  breaking  down 
the  vast  fabric  of  the  Roman  Catholic  religion  nor  in  building  up 
Protestantism.  It  will  have  little  or  no  effect,  for  the  simple  rea- 
son that  it  is  not  true  ;  is  not  fact.  And  it  may  be  inferred  with 
tolerable  certainty  that  a  time  will  come  when  the  erroneous  ideas 
and  this  blind  zeal  will  no  longer  deceive  the  world  nor  the  zealots 
themselves.  Can  any  fair  minded  man  assign  a  reason  why  the 
Romanists  should  be  less  sincere  in  their  religious  convictions  than 
any  other  class  of  Christians  ?  Laying  aside  then  any  claim  they 
may  have  upon  our  gratitude  for  the  good  they  have  unquestion- 
ably achieved  in  the  past,  why  cannot  we  accord  to  them  the  same 
purity  of  motive  we  claim  for  ourselves?  Unless  we  can  do  this 
we  are  intolerant  as  Bramin.  "A  Bramin"  says  Lord  Macartney, 
"or  any  cast  of  Hindoos,  will  neither  admit  you  to  be  of  their  re- 
ligion, nor  to  be  converted  to  yours,  a  thing  which  struck  the  Por- 
tugese with  the  greatest  astonishment,  when  they  first  discovered 
the  East  Indies." 

But  to  proceed.  Though  we  do  not  go  to  the  length  of  the 
matter-of  fact  and  mistaken  Thomas  Gradgrind  in  his  theories  o( 
education,  we  seek  in  these  memorials  to  adhere  to  the  fact,  and 
if  fancy  sometimes  mingles  with  them  it  has  always  been  kept  sub- 
ordinate to  the  serious  object  in  view.  Fancy,  we  hope,  has  never 
run  away  with  us,  whatever  tendency  there  may  be  in  active  imag- 
ination to  mistake  thoui^hts  for  objects.  While  the  enthusiastic 
Gradgrind  is  undoubtedly  vci)-  clever  and  entertaining,  lu-  is  nut 
at  all  true.  Let  us,  however,  end  our  hackneyed  common-places 
with  the  theory  of  this  modern  school  inspector : 

"Ay,  ay,  ay  !  but  you  mustn't  fancy  I  That's  it.  You  are  never 
to  fancy.  You  are  not  to  do  anything  of  the  kind  You  are  to 
he  in  all  things  regulated  and  governed  by  fact.  We  hope  to  have 
before  long  a  board  of  fact,  composed  of  coiiunissioners  of  fact, 
who  will  force  the  people  to  be  a  people  of  fact,  and  of  nothing 
but  fact.  You  must  discard  the  word  fancy  altogether.  You  have 
nothing  to  do  with  it.  You  are  not  to  have  in  an)-  object  of  use 
or  ornament  that  which  would  be  a  contradiction  in  fact.  You 
don't  walk  upon  flowers  in  fact,  and  you  cannot  be  allowed  to  walk 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  I75 

Upon  flowers  in  carpets.  You  don't  find  that  foreign  birds  and 
butterflies  come  and  perch  upon  your  crockery,  you  cannot  be 
permitted  to  paint  foreign  birds  and  butterflies  upon  your  crock- 
ery. You  never  met  quadrupeds  going  up  and  down  walls,  you 
must  not  have  quadrupeds  represented  upon  walls.  You  must  use 
for  all  these  purposes  combinations  and  modifications  (in  primary 
colors)  of  mathematical  figures  which  are  susceptible  of  proof  and 
demonstration.  This  is  the  new  discovery.  This  is  fact.  This 
is  taste." 

With  all  respect  for  fact  and  many  misgivings  as  to  fancy,  we 
cannot  pretend  to  have  been  guided  in  our  writings  more  than  in 
our  life  by  this  so-called  new  discovery.  While  adhering  to  facts 
with  what  may  be  styled  a  "healthy"  pleasure,  we  have  not  com- 
mitted the  error  of  attempting  to  enlighten  the  reader,  by  dem- 
onstrating that  two  and  two  make  four  as  a  means  of  convinc- 
cing  him  that  all  we  have  said  has  been  upon  this  principle,  has 
led  to  this  undeniable  result.  On  the  contrary  we  have  so  far 
swerved  from  the  false  theories  of  the  immortal  Gradgrind  as  to 
indulge  without  obstructing  our  narrative  in  suflicient  common 
place,  in  the  way  of  reflections,  to  enable  the  reader  easily  to  pick 
out  our  theory  of  life,  and  the  average  reader  has  a  fancy  for  under- 
standing, reading  the  author  as  well  as  his  works.  As  we  do  not 
write  here,  however,  for  the  purpose  of  carr3'ing  out  an  idea,  we 
do  not  consider  ourselves  bound  to  adhere  to  severe  rules  as  to 
harmony  and  proportion  In  a  series  of  disconnected  sketches  or 
rambling  reminiscences,  a  latitude  is  allowed  which  would  be  in- 
consistent with  a  treatise  in  which  every  part  bears  a  relation  to 
the  whole.  Availing  ourselves  of  this  theory  we  must  mention  a 
fact,  on  the  supposition  that  the  reader  has  not  discovered  it  for 
himself,  which  is  unconnected  with  the  matters  in  hand  and  yet 
pertinent  somewhat  to  all  we  have  said,  namely  that,  like  most 
people  who  aflect  to  think,  we  have  some  notion  about  the  world 
in  general.  We  are  not  likely  to  have  a  better  opportunity  to  lug 
in  this  afl"air  than  the  present,  and  we  derive  an  additional  pleasure 
from  doing  so  for  the  reason  that  our  fine  flow  of  spirits  has  now 
and  again  caused  surprise  to  our  friends,  who  are  familiar  with  our 
diversified  and  eventful  career,  in  which  there  have  been  more 
"downs"  than  "ups."  Our  animal  spirits  are  unquestionably  good 
and  our  temper  of  mind  the  reverse  of  despairing,  and  we  have 
thus  been  led  into  a  playful  vein  of  irony  from  time  to  time,  but 
we  trust  never  to  the  ridicule  of  grave  and  serious  subjects.  Our 
philosophy,  if  the  word  is  permissible  to  us,  is  that  of  optimism. 
As  a  matter  of  fact  we  think  events  are  so  arranged  as  to  turn  out 
happily  in  the  long  run.  Upon  this  hypothesis  the  facts  of  life 
are  explained   by  allowing  plenty   of  time   for  arrangement   and 


176  RAMBLING    RPIMINISCENCES. 

by    pointing   out   the   imperfection   of  our  means   of  judgment. 
"All  nature  is  but  art,  unknown  to  thee, 
All  chance  direction,  which  thou  can'st  not  see. 
All  discord,  harmony  not  understood; 
All  partial  evil,  universal  good." 

— Pope. 

In  other  words  there  is  strictly  speaking,  no  evil  at  all  in  the 
world.  If  a  man  entertaining  such  views  is  not  cheerful  sometimes 
even  unto  gaiety,  where  under  heaven  is  the  sunshine  of  the  mind 
to  come  from  ?  and  if  such  a  man  is  sometimes  merry  may  he  not 
rtly  upon  the  indulgence  of  a  generous  public?  Let  us  then  com- 
bine not  against  the  baliii  of  (Hlead,  the  Papists,  the  truths  of  his- 
tory or  anything  that  is  good  or  anybody  striving  to  do  good,  but 
against  those  who  travesty  human  nature  by  charging  that  the 
mass  of  mankind  are  generally  ready  to  combine  against  excel- 
lence, because  we  can  never  adequately  understand  that  of  which 
we  have  no  experience  in  ourselves. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 


FOLKESTONE — CLUB      LIFE  — MARTELLO     TOWERS— SHORNCLIFF 
CAMP  AND  THE  ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  BRITISH  ARMY- 
VISIT   TO   A    COUNTRY   HOUSE — LORD    ELLEN- 
BOROUGH — ETIQUETTE,    ETC. 


Among  the  agreeable  people  we  met,  when  on  a  visit  to  Wald- 
ershare  Park,  the  seat  of  the  Earl  of  Guildford,  and  now  occupied 
by  the  Dowager  and  her  family,  at  the  he^-^d  of  which  stands  her 
eldest  son,  Lord  North,  was  an  old  gentleman  by  the  name  of 
Brockman,  who,  strangely  enough,  turned  out  to  be  the  kinsman 
of  our  lady  acquaintances  in  Marine  Parade.  Living  on  his  estate 
in  Kent,  Mr.  B.  is  a  fine  type  of  the  squirearchy,  intelligent,  edu- 
cated,   prosperous,  public   spirited,  and  hospitable.     The   duties, 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENSES.  I77 

privileges  and  delights  of  a  country  gentleman  have  been  so  well 
expressed  by  a  charming  writer,  that  we  give  them  in  his  own 
words  :  "Indeed,  I  do  not  know  a  more  enviable  condition  of  life, 
than  that  of  an  English  gentleman  of  sound  judgment  and  good 
feelings,  who  passes  the  greater  part  of  his  time  on  an  hereditary 
estate  in  the  country.  From  the  excellence  of  the  roads  and  the 
rapidity  and  exactness  of  the  public  conveyances,  he  is  enabled  to 
command  all  the  comforts  and  conveniences,  all  the  intelligence 
and  novelties  of  the  capital,  while  he  is  removed  from  its  hurry 
and  distraction.  He  has  ample  means,  occupation  and  amusement 
within  his  own  domains  ;  he  may  diversify  his  time  by  rural  occu- 
pations, by  rural  sports,  by  study,  and  by  the  delights  of  friendly 
society  collected  within  his  own  friendly  halls.  Or  if  his  views  and 
feelings  are  of  a  more  liberal  and  extensive  nature,  he  has  it  greatly 
in  his  power  to  do  good,  and  to  have  that  good  immediately  re- 
flected back  upon  himself  He  can  render  essential  service  to  his 
country,  by  assisting  in  the  disinterested  administration  of  the 
laws  ;  by  v/atchin;^  over  the  opinions  and  principles  of  the  lower 
orders  around  him;  by  diffusing  among  them  those  lights  which  may 
be  important  to  their  welfare ;  by  mingling  frankly  among  them, 
gaining  their  contidence,  becoming  the  imsnediate  auditor  of  their 
complaints,  informing  himself  of  their  wants,  making  himself  a 
channel  through  which  their  grievances  may  be  quietly  commur^i- 
cated  to  the  proper  sources  of  mitigation  and  relief;  or  becoming, 
if  need  be,  the  intrepid  and  incorruptible  guardian  of  their  liber- 
ties—the enlightened  champion  of  their  rights." 

One  afternoon  Mr.  Brockman  called  to  say  that  he  had  just  seen 
his  kinswomen  in  the  adjoining  villa,  and  had  invited  them  to  meet 
us  at  Beechborough  on  the  6th  of  October.  He  had  repeatedly 
extended  an  invitation  to  us  before  this  time,  and  now  urged  our 
acceptance  in  the  heartiest  manner.  We  afterwards  learned  that 
our  friend,  Aubrey  Alexander,  had  written,  asking  him  to  call, 
which  furnished  an  explanation  of  Mr.  Brockman's  generous 
warmth  and  pronounced  politeness.  After  a  conference  with  the 
ladies  we  accepted  this  invitation  and  promised  to  be  with  him  on 
the  appointed  day. 

Wishing  to  see  as  much  as  possible  of  the  country,  we  express- 
ed our  luggage  to  Folkestone  and  set  out  on  foot,  on  a  bright  Sep- 
tember morning,  for  that  place,  by  a  path  leading  over  the  clififs. 
Our  friends  promised  to  join  us  at  Folkestone  a  few  days  later. — 
This  pathway  is  never  safe,  except  on  such  fine  days  as  the  one 
selected  for  our  excursion,  and  many  horrible  stories  are  related 
of  adventurous  persons,  who,  attempting  to  pass  it,  have  been 
blown  into  the  sea  below.  During  a  storm  these  cliffs  exhibited, 
as  may  be  imagined,  a  striking  combination  of  congenial    horrors. 


jyS  RAMBLING    REMINISCENSES. 

But  seen  by  us  when  no  driving  storm  darkened  the  face  of  na- 
ture with  its  portentious  gloom,  and  when  the  rays  of  a  bright,  if 
not  unclouded  sun  gladdened  the  sparkling  waters  of  the  deep 
blue  sea,  it  awakened  only  pleasant  thoughts. 

Folkestone  on-the  cliff  is  one  of  the  most  fashionable  agreea- 
ble and  healthy  spots  on  the  south  coast.  The  high  town  is  com- 
f)osed  of  new,  spacious  and  elegant  residences,  many  of  them  be- 
onging  to  families  from  different  parts  of  the  kingdom  who  annu- 
ally occupy  them  during  the  sunimer.  It  supports,  and  this  in  no 
mean  matter,  one  of  the  finest  clubs  out  of  London,  called  "The 
Radnor,"  of  which  the  author  was  elected  an  honorary  member 
and  where  he  met  many  charming  people  and  played  many  a 
rubber.  Club  life  is  one  of  the  most  agreeable  features  in  the  so- 
cial habits  of  England  and  contributes  largely  to  the  happiness  of 
the  people.  The  English  clubs,  unlike  those  of  France,  are  estab- 
lished entirely,  or  almost  entirely  for  social  purposes,  while  in  Paris 
the  object  of  assembling  is  solely  for  the  interchange  of  political 
thought  or  for  the  direct  furtherance  of  purely  political  ends.— 
Even  the  great  party  clubs  of  Pall  Mall,  the  Reform  and  Carlton, 
are  social  first  and  political  afterwards.  This  the  author  quickly 
learned,  for  he  long  enjoyed  honorary  membership  in  the  Reform 
Club  and  daily  availed  himself  of  the  comforts  and  conveniences 
of  this  palatial  edifice.  These  elegant  centres  of  reunion  exist  in 
all  the  cities  and  large  towns  of  the  Kingdom,  and  the  author  rare- 
ly visited  a  country  town  to  remain  a  week  that  the  hospitalities 
of  the  local  club,  such  as  the  "Weymouth,  and  County  club"  at 
Weymouth,  were  not  extended  to  him,  and  he  had  the  "run"  of 
several  in  the  West  End.  Shortly  after  he  reached  Folkestone  he 
Was  admitted  to  the  Radnor  and  it  contributed  much  to  the  pleas- 
ure of  his  visit.  Among  the  best  remembered  men  of  mark  whom 
We  met  in  this*club  were  Lord  Elibank,  the  venerable  Marquis  of 
Tweeddale,  aid-de-camp  of  the  Duke  of  Wellington  during  the 
F*eninsular  war,  Admiral  Sir  Dalrymple  Hay,  Pleydell  Bouverie, 
Sir  C.  Eardley,  Gen.  Hankey,  Dr.  Henry  Lewis.  Earl  Darnley  and 
Mr.  Charles  Eyre,  a  London  Solicitor,  one  of  the  best  informed 
and  entertaining  talkers  in  the  realm.  After  he  had  enjoyed  a 
good  dinner  and  a  bottle  of  sherry,  the  charms  of  his  conversation 
reminded  us  of  a  line  in  Statira's  speech,  where  she  describes  the 
charms  of  Alexander's  conversation.  "Then  he  would  talk.  Good 
Gods  !  how  he  would  talk."  The  officers  from  Shorecliff  also 
came  of  an  afternoon  for  whist  or  billiards,  and  not  unfrequently  a 
few  from  Dover.  Among  the  most  constant  of  those  from  Dover 
Were  Col.  Watson  and  Captain  Thomas.  The  latter,  however, 
was  not  a  part  of  the  Dover  garrison.  Those  who  came  with  no 
view  to  the  intellectual  dissipation  of  cards,  sipped  Irish    whiskey, 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  179 

smoked  old  pipes  and  discussed  in  a  pathetic  mood  the  progress 
of  liberal  idea,  for  two  of  the  most  conservative  elements  in  the 
kingdom  are  the  army  and  navy. 

The  old  town  of  P^olkestone,  lying  on  the  sands  below  the  cliffs, 
is  a  curious  place,  full  of  narrow  streets,  blind  alleys  and  stuffy 
courts.  It  is  said  to  have  been  occupied  by  the  Romans,  and  the 
ruins  of  one  of  their  watch  towers  are  still  pointed  out.  In  more 
recent  times  the  old  town  was  the  resort  of  smugglers  and  pirates, 
and  is  now  much  loved  and  crowded  by  fishermen,  harbor  labor- 
ers, sailors  and  other  boisterous  spirits,  male  and  female.  Like  all 
low  lying  fishing  villages  it  is  a  foul  smelling  and  uninviting  place. 
At  low  water  the  harbor  is  a  heap  of  mud  and  the  stranger  sees 
iittle  but  trains  coming  and  going,  steamers  landing  sallow,  beard- 
ed and  strange  looking  people  from  the  continent  and  piles  on  piles 
of  luggage. 

While  making  our  headquarters  in  this  place,  we  visited  many 
interesting  localities  on  the  coast  of  Kent,  notably  Romney  Marsh 
and  Dungeness  Light  House.  It  niay  not  be  uninteresting  to  give 
some  account  of  them.  Our  route  from  Dungeness  was  along  the 
cliffs  by  Sandgate,  a  bold  line  of  hills  lying  back  of  a  flat  shore  of 
shingle.  As  we  pursued  our  way  we  passed  at  regular  intervals  a 
number  of  Martello  Towers.  These  isolated  towers  are  so  called 
from  the  fact  that  the  first  one  towards  which  the  attention  of  Eng- 
land was  directed  was  in  Martello  bay,  Corsica.  Whei\  the  British 
naval  force  was  operating  against  Corsica  in  1784,  a  round  tower 
at  Marletto  or  Myrtle  bay  made  so  gallant  a  resistance  as  to  attract 
the  attention  not  only  of  the  British  government,  but  of  alL  Eu- 
rope;  and  the  English  resolved  to  construct  a  number  of  the  same 
kind  on  their  own  coast  The  Marletto  tower  is  a  circular  brick 
or  stone  fort  of  two  stories,  the  lower  divided  into  chambers  for 
the  reception  of  stores  and  the  upper  fitted  up  as  a  casement  or 
vaulted  chamber  for  the  troops.  The  diameter  usually  diminishes 
from  about  40  feet  at  the  base  to  30  feet  at  the  summit  ;  the  height 
is  about  30  feet,  and  the  thickness  varies  from  about  five  feet  on 
the  land  side  to  ten  or  more  on  the  sea  face.  The  vaulted  roof  is 
so  thick  and  strong  as  to  be  shell  proof  The  circular  wall  extends 
high  enough  to  form  a  parapet,  and  on  the  circular  space  within 
this  parapet  is  a  gun  working  on  a  traversing  platform.  The  door- 
way is  at  a  height  of  about  eight  or  ten  feet  from  the  ground,  ac- 
cessible by  a  wooden  ladder,  which  is  removed  during  a  siege. — 
Many  of  them  are  surrounded  by  a  ditch  and  glacis.  They  con- 
stitute a  singular  series  of  defensive  works,  of  very  little  value 
since  the  invention  of  rifled  cannon. 

Sandgate  the  first  place  of  any  size  after  leaving  Folkestone  for 
Durgeness  is  an  aspiring  watering  place  and  lies  nestling  between 


l8o  RAMBLING     REMINISCEN'CES. 

green  hills  and  the  sea.  Passing  it  we  reached  Shorncliff  Camp, 
situated  up  the  naked  hills  and  hence  the  name  "Shorn"  or  "bare" 
cliff,  remarkable  for  its  healthfulness,  which  f^ct  and  its  prox- 
imity to  the  sea  has  led  to  its  selection  as  a  camping  ground  for 
troops.  It  was  first  used  for  this  purpose  during  the  wars  of 
Napoleon,  when  it  was  thought  of  the  first  importance  to  keep  a 
watch  upon  him,  and  if  he  approached  the  English  coast  to  have 
a  trained  force  ready  to  meet  him.  During  the  Crimean  war  large 
bodies  of  troops  were  kept  here  as  at  present  and  in  fact  the  camp 
has  been  a  rendezvous  since  the  year  1804. 

A  few  brief  words  may  here  find  an  appropriate  place  as  to 
some  of  the  peculiarities  of  the  British  army  organization.  It 
differs  from  the  French  and  American  is  this  that  in  the  English 
service  there  is  no  Colonel  Commandant  of  R^givienis,  actually 
in  command.  By  the  English  system,  the  lieutenant  Colonel 
performs  the  duty  of  commandant.  When  promoted,  it  is  not  to 
a  Colonelcy,  but  to  be  a  Brigadier,  then  to  be  a  Major  General, 
and  so  on.  After  becoming  a  full  general,  he  is  often  appointed 
to  be  the  Colonel  Commandiftit  of  a  particular  regiment,  merely 
that  he  may  draw  the  pay,  as  a  reward  for  services.  There  are 
many,  however,  who  when  they  have  reached  the  rank  of  General 
are  never  appointed  colonels,  for  the  reason  that  the  colonelcies  of 
numerous  regiments  are  conferred  upon  a  single  individual.  It  is 
a  means  of  increasing  the  salary  of  a  court  favorite.  Thus  Prince 
Albert  was  colonel  of  half  a  dozen  regiments  he  never  saw,  and 
received  the  pay  of  all,  though  by  holding  them  he  prevented  the 
advancement  of  many  meritorious  officers  to  whom  the  pay  would 
have  been  no  small  matter.  Prince  Albert  consented  to  accept 
these  positions  and  enjoy  the  pay  though  he  was  in  the  receipt  of 
;({^30,ooo  per  annum  for  his  privy  purse,  and  held  other  lucrative 
appointments. 

His  course  was  severely  criticised  by  all  but  the  Court  party. 
He  was  charged  with  an  excessive  love  of  "money,  with  selfishly 
obstructing  the  promotion  of  veterans;  ol  taking  pay  he  did  not 
want  and  cutting  off  the  means  of  support  of  old  generals  with 
large  families  who  needed  it ;  with  a  want  of  generosity  in  thus 
requiting  a  government  and  people  who,  notwithstanding  his  large 
private  fortune,  allowed  him  annually  $150,000,  not  one  cent  of 
which  he  ever  used,  but  which  he  placed  at  interest,  and  at  his 
death  disposed  of  in  his  will.  It  is  obvious  from  these  facts  that 
he  was  considered  as  a  man.  like  the  rest  of  mankind,  not  without 
his  faults.  As  however  this  excellent  Prince  was  guided  in  his 
course  by  the  genuine  principles  of  virtue,  was  a  good  citizen,  a 
good  husband  and  father,  and  sought  to  direct  the  Queen  in  a 
constitutional  course  for  the  promotion  of  the  prosperity   and  hap 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  l8l 

piness  of  her  people,  it  would  be  neither  fair  nor  generous  to 
judge  him  harshly  in  this  particular.  In  accepting  this  pay  he 
must  be  presumed  to  have  been  actuated,  as  in  the  rest  of  his  life, 
by  virtuous  and  commendable  motives. 

On  this  occasion  when  passing  Shorncliff  we  made  only  a  brief 
halt,  but  subsequendy  visited  the  camp  on  several  occasions.  Oar 
extensive  acquaintance  with  the  officers  and  with  what  is  styled  ir> 
England  "military  society, "Iboth  here  and  in  many  other  garrison 
towns,  made  the  subject  of  English  army  organization  more  than 
ordinarily  interesting.  Let  us  proceed  then  with  our  remarks  on 
this  grave  subject. 

England  possesses  the  weakest  land  force  of  any  of  the  Euro 
pean  powers,  and  if  she  be  regarded  according  to  the  number  of 
her  troops,  is  only  a  second-rate  power,  not  more  formidable  than 
Norway,  Sweden  or  Spain.  England,  however,  in  her  proud  old 
days,  when  her  history  was  written,  possessed  no  larger  army  than 
she  does  at  present.  A  hundred  years  ago  in  London  might  have 
been  seen  many  foreign  regiments  in  English  pay,  and  instead  of 
sending  her  own  countrymen  to  the  battle  field,  the  armies  even  of 
the  Iron  Duke  of  Wellington  were  only  half  composed  of  Eng- 
lishmen ;  the  other  half  consisted  of  Spaniards,  Portugese,  Dutch 
and  Germans.  In  the  war  of  the  American  revolution,  England 
hired  mercenary  troops  from  ^Hesse  Cassel  and  Brunswick  and 
instigated  the  Indians  to  attack  her  American  colonies.  It  was 
the  active  hostilities  of  the  Cherokees  against  the  South  Caro- 
linans  in  1776,  and  other  frontier  tribes  north  and  south,  which  so 
gready  irritated  the  colonist  against  the  mother  country  and  em- 
barrassed the  operations  of  the  American  armies,  which  fought 
with  foes  in  front  and  rear.  And  in  the  war  of  1812  the  British 
government  continued  this  deplorable  policy  commissioning  the 
Indian  chief  Tecumseh  a  Brigadier  General  in  the  British  army, 
in  which  capacity  Tecumseh  and  his  red-skin  warriors  co  oper- 
ated with  the  British  and  Canadian  forces  in  181 2-14  and  until  he 
was  killed  on  the  5th  of  October,  1813.  We  shall  not  stop  to 
comment  upon  this  conduct  or  to  give  the  comments  of  Bancroft 
or  any  American  historian,  anxious  as  we  are  to  allow  the  bitter 
animosities  of  the  past  to  slumber  in  the  grave.  We  cannot  pass 
on,  however,  without  expressing  our  regret  that  this  kind  of  states- 
manship still  prevails  with  the  Tory  party,  and  during  the  cam- 
paign of  1879,  in  Zulu  land,  the  British  not  only  hired  African- 
savages  to  operate  against  Cetewayo,  but  bribed  Cetewayo's  own 
brother  to  deceive  and  capture  the  redoubtable  chief  The  Tories 
seem  to  have  acted  on  the  principle  that  all  things  are  right  or 
justifiable  in  war,  without  remembering  the  trite  adage,  though 
you  should  lose  everything  else,  remember  to  preserve  your  good 


l82  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 

name.     Let  us  not   wander,  however,  too  much   from  the    point. 

The  happy  position  of  England  as  an  island,  which  defends  her 
from  foreign  invasion  is  far  better  than  any  other  European  state, 
permits  England  to  rest  contented  with  so  small  an  army  and  to 
rely  mainly  upon  a  powerful  fleet  for  her  defense.  Whilst  other 
powers  of  the  mainland,  even  in  time  of  peace,  are  obliged  to 
maintain  enormous  armies,  that  of  England  is  not  at  present 
stronger  than  it  was  30  years  ago.  The  strength  of  the  British 
army,  has,  indeed,  for  the  last  50  years  remained  unaltered. 

Whilst  the  continental  powers  have  been  engaged  in  army  re- 
form, the  English  army  has  remained  upon  its  old  footing.  In- 
stead of  red  coats  the  infimtry  of  the  line  wear  red  jackets.  They 
carry  the  best  breechloading  rifles ;  the  artillery  also  possess 
(better  guns,  and  the  service  and  drill  regulations  have  been  some- 
what altered,  but  this  is  all  the  modification  that  has  taken  place. 
The  English  army  is  recruited  from  the  lowest  classes,  and  in  fact 
the  army  has  not  been  inaptly  styled  a  reformatory  school.  It  is 
owing  to  the  fact  that  such  numbers  of  vicious  characters  enlist 
in  the  army  that  desertion  is  so  common.  Last  year  with  a  home 
and  colonial  force  of  169,000  men,  the  deserters  numbered  7,685  ; 
whereas  in  the  French  army  of  428.CCO  men  the  deserters  only 
numbered  300,  and  it  was  equally  small  in  the  German  army  of 
400,000  meu. 

The  English  soldiers  are  better  paid,  clothed  and  fed  than  any 
others  in  Europe,  receiving  in  one  week  more  than  a  poor  Rus- 
sian does  in  a  month.  The  pensions,  too,  are  much  higher  than 
are  allowed  by  other  European  States.  England  can.  under  her 
present  system,  only  bring  about  180,000  men  into  the  field  ;  and 
should  she  go  to  war  with  a  powerful  Continental  State,  she 
would  be  obliged  to  have  recourse  to  some  other  recruiting  sys 
tem.  In  England,  the  large  field  manoeuvres,  with  mixed  arms, 
which  take  place  in  European  countries  yearly,  are  unknown.  In 
the  whole  English  army,  therefore,  there  is  not  a  single  general 
who  has  had  under  his  orders  40,000  men.  Should  the  English 
army,  therefore,  ever  have  to  go  to  war  with  a  European  Power, 
and  have  to  fight  great  battles,  the  want  of  manceuvering  capaci- 
-ties  of  the  troops,  and  the  still  less  practice  of  the  higher  generals 
having  under  their  orders  50,000  and  60,000  men,  will  cause  them 
great  prejudice.  In  the  Crimean  war  it  was  shown  that  the  Eng- 
iish  troops,  in  point  of  courage,  were  quite  equal  to  the  elite  of  the 
French  army,  but  they  were  far  e.xcceded  in  their  manceuvering 
by  the  latter,  and  then  the  French  manoeuvered  worse  than  the 
Germans  who  in  this  respect  take  the  first  rank  in  Europe.  With 
respect  to  the  improved  military  education  of  the  officers  since 
vthe  Crimean  war,  great  progress  has  been  made  in  the  English 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCBS.  A^        •)       t'y.£,,.  T^J  "  ' 

(ITj'^y  *  **  -r^  *s 

army.     The  Military  Academy  of  Wool  wiclUisjitdleTit  arid   the 
officers  are  well  educated,  and   the  same   maJkCJ^^id   of  Sand 
hurst.     But  it  must  be  admitted  that    the    En^JisR   infantry    and  ^'' 
cavalry  officers  are  far  behind    both    the    French,    German .^and" 
American  officers  in  military  education.     With  respect  to  the  im 
provement  of  the  men,  the  officers  seem  to  give  themselves    little 
trouble  in  the  matter.     It  is  left  to  the  non  commissioned  officers 
The  distinction  between  the  officers  and  the    non  commissioned 
officers  in  the  English  army  is  still  greater  than   in  those  of  the 
continental  armies.     The   purchase  system   has    been    abolished, 
however,  and  therefore  a  great  evil  in   the   English  army    is    re- 
moved.    This  great  reform,  however,  was  so  strenuously  opposed 
by  the  Tory  party  that  Mr.  Gladstone  was  forced  in  order  to  ac 
complish  it  to  resort  to   the   Royal    prerogative.      The   officers, 
especially  of  Guards  and  Cavalry  almost  exclusively  belong  to  the 
aristocracy,  and  receive  allowances  from  their  parents.     Without 
such  allowances  they  are  unable  to  live.      The   middle  class  as  a 
rule  do  not  send  their  sons  into  the  army  but  place  them  in  com- 
merce, trade  and  manufactures. 

This  wise  course  is  becoming  common  with  the  aristocracy,  and 
the  Duke  of  Argyle,  whose  ancestor  800  years  ago  was  the  most 
powerful  subject  in  the  realm,  a  man  in  whose  veins  flows  the 
bluest  of  blue  blood,  (if  anybody  knows  what  that  is,)  has  three 
sons  in  trade,  brothers  of  the  Queen's  son-in-law,  John  D.  S, 
Campbell,  Marquis  of  Lome  and  Governor-General  of  Canada, 
namely.  Lord  Archibald  Campbell,  a  wine  merchant,  Lord  Wal- 
ter, a  tea  taster,  and  Lord  ,  a  cotton  broker,  and  no    right 

minded  man  thinks  less  of  them,  though    descended    from   that 
famous  Duke  of  modern  times,  thus  immortalized  by  Pope: 

"Argyle,  the  State's  whole  thunder  born  to  wield. 
And  shake  alike  the  Senate  and  the  field." 

The  English  officers  are,  everything  considered,  badly  paid. 
An  infantry  lieutenant  must  at  least  have  a  private  income  of 
^100,  and  twice  as  much  is  necessary  for  cavalry  officer.  When 
oft  duty  the  English  officers  do  not  wear  uniform,  and  seem  as 
proud  to  be  thought  gentlemen  as  officers.  The  recent  custom 
therefore  of  the  Duke  of  Edinburg  in  wearing  his  uniform  when 
traveling  and  generally  when  oft"  of  duty,  as  is  the  case  in'  Russia 
and  Germany,  has  occasioned  much  comment  and  of  a  kind  far 
from  complimentary  to  him.  He  has  been  advised  that  in  Eng- 
land the  civil  power  has  always  taken  precedence  of  the  military, 
-and  that  no  foreign  customs  will  be  tolerated  which  look  to  giving 
greater  prominence  to  the  military  or  naval  ;  nor  to  the  intro- 
-duction  into  England  of  anything  which  smacks  of  personal  gov- 


I84  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

ernir.ent  or  Imperialism.  This  he  has  been  advised  of  notwith- 
standing Baconsfield's  success  in  adding  to  her  Majesty's  title  the 
words  "Empressof  India." 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 


VISIT  TO  A  COUNTRY  HOUSE — LORD  ELLENBOROUGH MATTERS  OF 

ETIQUETTE — OSMOND  PRIAULX— TOURIST^. 

Having  now  improved  our  opportunity  of  sight  seeing  to  the 
best  advantage,  being  able  to  converse  in  an  intelligent  manner 
about  things  in  this  locality,  and  the  time  having  arrived  for  our 
visit  to  Beechborough,  we  completed  our  arrangements,  and  tak- 
ing the  Misses  S,  under  our  care  we  set  forward  for  that  hospi- 
table abocje.  The  mansion  stands  on  a  commanding  height. 
We  had  often  seen  it  from  afar  in  our  various  excursions,  and  on 
reaching  it  we  found  it  one  of  the  stateliest  of  England's  stately 
homes. 

Originally  built  of  stone  or  brick,  it  has  been  disfigured  by  a 
coat  of  stucco,  and  is  now  of  a  drab  color.  Standing  in  a  widely 
extending  park  of  undulating  ground,  it  has  an  air  of  quiet  and 
comfortable  old  age,  the  ancient  porch  overgrown  with  woodbine 
and  ivy,  the  tall  gables  peeping  through  taller  beech  trees.  On 
one  side  the  windows  looked  out  upon  a  sunny  orchard  and  a 
green  hill  side,  which  slopes  down  to  luxuriant  meadows. 
From  the  opposite  side  are  to  be  seen  far  down  in  the  Valley, 
near  the  stock  yard  and  barn,  a  pool  of  water,  always  lively  with 
ducks,  and  on  the  green  margin  ol  which  a  flock  of  geese  were 
always  gabbling.  Lazy  cows  chewed  their  cud  over  the  rails  of 
the  enclosure,  and  fat  pigs  delved  up  the  litter  of  tlie  yards  with 
their  snouts.  This  was  the  headquarters  of  one  of  the  tenant 
farmers. 

Here  we  enjoyed  a  week's  visit,  finding  our  host  and  his  com- 
pany, for  several  others  besides  our  party  were  in  the  house  at 
the  time,  pleasant  and  agreeable  people.  There  was  a  lawyer  in 
the  company,  Mr.  Hawkins,  who  always  started  some  good  topic  ; 


RAMBLING     REMINISCF.NSES.  185 

the  rector  of  a  neighboring  parish,  Mr.  Stanhope,  a  delightful 
companion,  and  a  lord — nothing  is  complete  without  one  of  the 
conservative  race — and  one  of  the  great  lords,  too — the  venerablq 
and  distinguished  Earl  of  Ellenborough.  Though  it  has  beert 
said  of  this  eminent  man  that  he  was  more  eloquent  than  wise,  we 
found  him  such  good  and,  indeed,  improving  company  that  we 
are  inclined  to  think  that  if  all  lords  were  of  his  type,  we  should 
soon  learn  to  love  them  as  much  as  the  average  Briton.  The 
company  assimilated  well  and  the  time  could  not  have  passed 
snore  pleasantly — good  breeding  and  general  elegance  of  manners 
prevailing  with  all.  A  friend  informed  us  that  our  venerable  host 
took  pains  in  the  selection  of  his  company,  and  never  allowed  the 
quiet  of  his  country  home  to  be  disturbed  by  those  so  well  known 
as  "trashy  London  dashers."  He  generally  had  in  his  company  a 
few  officers  and  their  wives,  but  not  those  who  recalled  too  forcibly 
in  their  conversation  barrack  life  ;  a  traveler,  if  such  could  be  found, 
unlike  the  stock  tourist  who  travels  far  and  sees  nothing;  a  few  wri- 
ters or  literary  men  to  make  a  charming  spice  for  all,  but  like  all 
spices,  he  would  not  allow  too  much  of  them.  These  "literary 
fellows"  want  keeping  down  said  he ;  otherwise  they  would  turn 
his  house  into  an  Athenaeum  club.  In  their  society,  too,  he  said, 
you  feel,  if  you  venture  to  talk  yourself,  you  should  contribute 
something  substantial  to  the  "feast  of  reason"  —a  thing  many  find 
it,  continued  Mr.  B.,  easier  to  speak  of  than  do. 

Before  leaving  this  hospitable  abode  and  the  subject,  it  may  be 
perniitted  us  to  interpolate  something  as  to  that  remarkable  man 
whom  Guizot  pronounced  the  most  brilliant  orator  in  the  Tor3' 
ranks.  Lord  Ellenborough.  Guizot,  who  was  long  French  Envoy 
to  England  and  no  mean  authority,  expressed  this  opinion,  and  he 
was  in  the  habit  of  hearing  Lord  Derby,  Lansdown,  Sir  Robert 
Peel,  Mr.  Gladstone,  Disraeli,  and  other  British  orators.  Hon.  Ed- 
ward Law,  afterwards  Earl  of  Ellenborough,  entered  public  life  in 
1828  9,  under  the  Duke  of  Wellingt<^n,  and  by  the  Cabinet  of  Sir 
Robert  Feel  was  made  Governor- General  of  India,  where  he  was 
guilty  of  vagaries  which  filled  the  Directors  of  the  Company  with 
the  utmost  alarm.  Although  a  civilian,  he  inflicted  intolerable 
slights  upon  the  civil  servants  of  the  company.  He  reserved  his 
favor  and  confidence  for  the  military,  yet  endangered  the  discipline 
of  the  ver}'  army  which  he  had  endeavored  lo  conciliate  by  im- 
prudent and  unjustifiable  means.  He  made  showy  p' ogresses, 
which  brought  ridicule  upon  the  British  name.  He  addressed 
proclamations  to  the  rulers  and  nations  of  India,  which  appeared 
to  sanction  idolatry,  and  finally,  in  the  bombastic  and  inflated  lan- 
guage of  his  proclamation  concerning  the  gates  of  Juggernaut, 
when  brought  back  from  Ghuznee,  he  reached  a  climax  of  absurd- 

(47) 


1 86  RAMBLING    REMINISCENSES. 

ity  which  no  Viceroy  had  ever  attained,  yet  the  British  govern- 
ment stood  by  him.  Not  so  the  Directory — the  Directory,  com- 
posed of  business  men.  They  recalled  the  eccentric  Governor- 
General.  As  soon  as  he  reached  England  he  was  promoted  to  an 
Earldom,  and  in  1858  was  again  Minister  for  India,  and  soon  be- 
came involved  in  a  quarrel  with  Lord  Canning,  the  then  Governor- 
General,  the  result  of  which  was  that  he  resigned  his  position  in 
the  cabinet  of  Lord  Derby — not,  however  in  the  usual  way.  In- 
stead of  handing  his  resignation  to  the  Prime  Minister,  as  if  he  had 
f\o  superior  in  the  cabinet,  he  laid  it  before  the  Queen.  • 

In  1855,  Lord  Ellenborough  addressed  the  House  of  Lords  in 
a  speech  in  opposition  to  the  Government's  Russian  policy,  to 
.which  the  "'Times"  thus  referred  next  day  :  "The  most  briliant 
audience  in  Britain  was  kept  for  above  an  hour  suspended  between 
platitudes  which  no  one  contest,  and  the  paradoxes  which  no*  one 
.could  believe.  Most  of  those  present  retired  with  the  melancholy 
conviction  that,  although  the  country  may  be  sorely  in  want  of  a 
powerful  war  minister,  that  heaven  born  statesman  had  not  been 
found  in  the  accomplished  orator  who  had  commenced  the  discus 
sion."  During  the  Indian  mutiny.  Lord  Ellenborough  criticised 
the  Government  policy  and  the  conduct  of  affairs  until  it  led  to  a 
breach  between  Lord  Granville  and  himself  He  continued  his 
course  of  opposition  to  the  Liberals  until  he  was  denounced  by 
that  party  as  the  greatest  imposter  among  living  statesmen — the 
greatest  charlatan  among  living  politicians.  Yet  he  was  consid- 
<ered,  by  many,  as  the  best  debater  in  either  house  of  Parliament. 
We  can  scarcely  render  adequate  justice  to  the  charm  and  impres- 
siveness  of  his  manner  even  in  private— the  reader  can  form  an 
idea  of  what  it  was  in  public.  His  voice  is  sonorous,  full,  clear  and 
penetrating.  The  figure  manly,  the  features  handsome,  the  hair 
grey,  with  the  snows  of  seventy  winters,  yet  abundant.  His  gest- 
'Ure  is  easy  yet  dignified,  his  emphasis  not  too  frequent,  but  decisive. 
His  eloquence  is  perfection,  and  we  could  not  but  think  that  if  he 
showed  to  such  advantage  in  the  private  circle,  the  admiration  of 
Guizot,  as  embodied  in  his  fine  phraseology  was  not  unduly  exci- 
ted by  his  displays  in  the  House  of  Peers.  In  his  Toryism  he  out 
Heroded  Herod,  and  was  almost  ferocious  in  his  opposition  to  re- 
formers and  any  change  in  the  British  Constitution  tendmg  to- 
wards Liberalism. 

Our  visit  to  this  country  seat  suggests  a  few  remarks  on 
•visits  to  country  houses  before  we  quit  the  subject.  Since 
an  Englishman's  house  is  his  castle,  no  one,  not  even  a  near  rela- 
tion, has  a  right  to  invite  himself  to  stay  in  it.  It  is  not  only  tak- 
ing a  liberty  to  do  so,  but  may  prove  to  be  very  inconvenient.  A 
general  invitation,  too,  should  never  be  acted  on.     It  is  often  given 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  187 

without  any  intention  of  following^  it  up.  An  invitation  specifies 
the  persons  whom  it  includes,  and  the  person  invited  can  never 
presume  to  take  with  him  anyone  not  specified.  If  a  gentleman 
cannot  dispense  with  his  valet,  or  a  lady  with  her  maid*  they  should 
write  to  ask  leave  to  brings  a  servant.  Children  or  horsts  cannot 
be  taken  without  special  mention  is  made  of  them,  nor  is  it  e^ood 
taste  to  take  too  much  luggage.  The  length  of  the  visit  is  always 
specified  in  the  invitation.  This  saves  a  deal  of  trouble.  While 
on  a  visit  you  should  make  it  a  point  to  give  as  little  trouble  as 
possible,  to  conform  to  the  habits  of  your  entertainers  and  never 
be  in  the  way.  On  this  princip'e  you  will  retire  to  your  own  oc- 
cupations soon  after  breakfast,  unless  some  arrangement  has  been 
made  for  passing  the  morning  otherwise.  If  you  have  nothing  to 
do  you  may  be  sure  that  your  host  has.  Another  point  of  good 
breeding  is  to  be  punctual  at  meals.  A  host  always  provides 
amusement  for  his  guests — in  fact  the  rule  on  which  he  acts  is  to 
make  his  visitors  as  much  at  home  as  possible  ;  that  on  which  the 
visitor  should  act,*is  to  interfere  as  little  as  possible  with  the  do- 
mestic routine  of  the  house. 

But  we  are  again  in  Folkestone  and  must  give  the  reader  some 
respite  by  bringing  this  chapter  to  a  speedy  close. 

During  our  many  visits  to  the  historical  spots  and  other  inter- 
esting localities  and  objects  in  this  part  of  England,  we  were  usual- 
ly accompanied  by  our  friend  Osmond  Priaulx,  of  London,  a  man 
of  talent  and  learning.  Mr.  Priaulx  dropped  us  a  note  when  he 
heard  we  were  in  Folkestone  and  intended  to  remain  there  a  month, 
to  say  that  he  would  come  down  by  the  next  train  and  spend  the 
same  time  by  the  sea.  Delighted  at  this  intelligence,  we  immedi-* 
ately  engaged  him  apartments  near  our  own  in  Cheriton  Road. — 
His  active  mind,  which  showed  itself  in  a  spirit  of  prying  obser- 
vation and  incessant  curiosity,  his  large  stores  of  knowledge  and 
his  intimate  acquaintance  with  this  part  of  the  world  and  many  of 
the  country  people,  made  him  not  only  a  charming,  but  the  most 
useful  of  companions.  A  man  not  only  of  talent  but  of  genius,  he 
was  entirely  unlike  some  with  whom  we  have  journied.  We  refer 
to  those  self  satisfied,  half  witted  fellows,  who,  because  they  have 
gone  over  certain  ground  and  seen  nothing,  return  as  ignorant, 
confused  and  vapid  as  they  started  out  on  their  travels,  fancy  that 
all  that  which  a  man  of  talent  sees  and  describes  has  no  existence 
out  of  his  imagination.  These  snappy  snobs  who  have  now  and 
again  floated  down  the  current  with  us,  and  who  are  destitute  of 
observation  and  discrimination,  incapable  of  deriving  any  benefit 
from  travel,  make  themselves  objects  of  ridicule  by  perpetrating 
comments  upon  the  accounts  of  the  more  gifted  class  of  tourists. 
Such  fatuous  individuals  grope  through  the   world  in   a  kind   of 


l88  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 

twilight,  bewildered  by  the  obscurity  of  their  incapacity  to  see  ob- 
jects in  their  true  colors  and  dimensions,  and  bring  strongly  to 
memory  the  significant  words  of  a  clever  writer,  that  the  chief 
point  of  difference  between  a  man  of  talent  and  the  man  without, 
consists  of  the  different  ways  in  which  their  minds  are  employed 
during  the  same  interval.  They  are  obliged,  let  us  suppose,  to 
walk  from  Temple  Bar  to  Hyde  Park  corner.  The  dull  man  goes 
straight  forward  ;  he  has  so  many  furlongs  to  traverse  He  ob- 
serves ff  he  meets  any  of  his  acquaintances;  he  enquires  respect- 
ing their  health  and  iheir  family.  He  glances  perhaps  at  the  shops 
as  he  passes  :  he  admires  the  fashion  of  a  buckle,  and  the  metal  of 
a  tea  urn.  If  he  experiences  any  flights  of  fancy,  they  are  of  a 
short  extent :  of  the  same  nature  as  the  flight  of  a  forest  bird, 
clipped  of  his  wings  and  condemned  to  hop  the  rest  of  his  life  in 
a  barnyard.  On  the  other  hand,  the  man  of  talent  gives  full  scope 
to  his  imagination.  He  laughs  and  cries.  Unindebted  to  the  sug- 
gestions of  the  surrounding  objects,  his  whole  soul  is  employed. 
He  enters  into  nice  calculations,  he  digests  sagncious  reasonings. 
In  imagination  he  declaims  or  describes,  impressed  with  the  deep- 
est sympathy,  or  elevated  to  the  loftiest  rapture.  He  makes  a 
thousand  new  and  admirable  combinations.  He  passes  through  a 
thousand  imaginary  scenes,  tries  his  courage,  tasks  his  ingenuity 
and  thus  becomes  gradually  prej.ared  to  meet  almost  any  of  the 
many  colored  events  of  human  life.  He  consults  by  the  aid  of 
memory  the  books  he  has  read,  and  projects  others  for  the  future 
instruction  and  delight  of  mankind.  If  he  observes  the  passen- 
gers, he  reads  their  countenances,  conjectures  their  past  history, 
and  forms  a  superficial  notion  of  their  wisdom  or  folly,  their  virtue 
or  vice,  their  satisfaction  or  misery.  If  he  observes  the  scenes' 
that  occur,  it  is  with  the  eye  of  a  connoisseur  or  an  artist.  Every 
object  is  capable  of  suggesting  to  him  a  volume  of  reflections. — 
The  time  of  these  two  persons  in  one  respect  resembles  :  it  has 
brought  them  both  to  Hyde  Park  corner.  In  almost  every  other 
respect  it  is  dissimilar. 

Much  more  might  be  said  upon  this  subject,  but  we  are  restrain- 
ed by  that  laudable  fear  of  tediousness'  which  authors  should  al- 
ways have  before  their  eyes. 


RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES.  189 


CHAPTER  XIX. 


ROMNEY  MARSH  AND  DUNGENESS — TPIE  MILITARY  CANAL — NAPO- 
LEON— PLANS  FOR  THE  INVASION  OF  ENGLAND — THE 
ORIGIN  OF  ENGLISH    LIGHT   HOUSES — A  TYPE 
OF  THE  MODERN  POLITICIAN. 


After  a  few  further  days  spent  at  Folkestone,  to  which  we  re- 
turned from  our  numerous  excursions  in  south-eastern  Kent,  as 
persistently  as  a  Frenchman  to  his  *'mouton  ;"  days  given  to  the 
blandishments  of  sea-side  society;  the  intricacies  of  short  whist, 
and  the  excitement  of  fishing  in  a  cock  boat  on  the  English  chan- 
nel, we  set  out  once  more  by  the  Coast  road  to  make  our  contem- 
plated visit  to  Romney  Marsh  and  Dungeness  Light  House.  More 
than  once  the  reader  has  been  promised  the  details  of  this  visit,  but 
as  usual,  our  numerous  digressions  have  prevented  his  getting 
them.  Instead  of  going  forward  by  the  direct  line  to  the  end  of 
our  journey,  we  have  allowed  ourselves  to  be  drawn  aside,  like  a 
child  following  a  butterfly,  by  the  attractions  of  Shorncliff  andour 
interest  in  the  British  army,  and  our  sojourn  at  Beechborough  and 
the  delights  of  society  in  a  country  house.  These  have  been  the 
natural  and  interesting  causes  of  our  delay  rather  than  uncontrol- 
lable impulse  in  our  pen  to  wander  wantonly  and  wildly. 

The  coast  road  which  we  again  followed,  led  us,  as  the  reader  is^ 
now  aware,  over  the  familiar  path  to  Sandgate,  Shorncliffand  Salt- 
wood  Castle — the  green  cliffs  of  Albion  being  to  our  right  and  the 
sparkling  waters  of  the  deep  blue  sea  spread  out  to  the  left.  The 
sky  was  bright  and  the  air  bracing.  It  seemed  but  yesterday  since 
the  merry  month  of  May.  The  flowers  were  gay,  sweet  and  pret- 
ty as  when  in  the  Spring- time,  they  leap  over  the  lea  and  cluster 
round  our  feet.  The  glad  voice  of  what  seemed  a  new  spring 
made  the  woods  and  welkin  ring.  Yet  evidence  was  not  wanting 
that  autumn  presided  over  the  land.  Ripe  corn  was  stacked  in  the 
fields,  ruddy  fruit  bent  the  branches  of  many  a  goodly  tree,  the 
air  was  loaded  with  the  scent  of  gathered  hops.  Mother  earth, 
with  a  bounteous  hand,  scattered  rich  largess  to  her  children.  The 
plantations  of  wood  were  kindling  into  hues  of  gorgeous  beauty, 
mixed  and  manifold  ;  the  stubble-field  gleamed  out  like  tarnished 
gold  in  the. mild  lustre  of  the  temperate  day  ;  clouds  in  the  azure 


igo  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

ocean  above  floated  away  like  silver  barks — softly  caine  and  went 
the  winds. 

Looking  out  upon  the  smiling  landscapes  which 'presented  an 
enchanting  scene  of  peace  and  plenty,  the  lines  of  the  essayist  re- 
curred to  memory,  "a  beautiful  prospect  delights  the  soul  as  much 
as  a  demonstration;  and  a  description  in  Homer  has  charmed 
more  readers  than  a  chapter  in  Aristotle." 

About  midday  we  reached  Hythe,  having  lingered  frequently  to 
examine  some  object  of  interest  or  to  take  a  "bitter."  One  of  the 
chief  objects  of  curiosity  of  the  road  was  the  crypt  of  St.  Leon- 
ard's church,  where  we  saw  hundreds  of  human  skulls  ranged  on. 
shelves  for  inspection.  These  ghastly  remains  have  sorely  puzzled 
archaeologists.  The  guide  informed  us  they  were  the  skulls  of  the 
Danes  and  Northmen  who  invaded  England  before  the  time  of 
the  Normans,  information  which  we  received  with  much  gravity 
and  many  doubts.  It  is  most  probable  they  were  dug  up  when 
the  foundation  of  the  present  church  was  laid.  Resuming  our 
course  we  reached  West  Hythe  and  found  ourselves  on  a  plain 
something  like  a  prairie,  and  covered  with  grass,  with  hardly  a 
tree,  bush  or  hedge,  with  few  houses  or  inhabitants,  but  abundance 
of  sheep.     This  is  Romney  marsh. 

The  military  canal  which  crosses  this  country  is  a  singular  work 
of  defence,  constructed  in  1804,  when  the  English  apprehended  a 
French  invasion. 

Napoleon  had  assembled  in  1803-4  a  vast  flotilla  of  flat-bottom- 
ed boats  at  Boulogne  which  was  to  be  used  for  the  invasion  of 
England.  -He  was  at  this  time  unusually  active  and  energetic  in 
his  movements  ;  had  gone  in  person  to  Ponte  de  Briques,  a  small 
village  three  miles  from  Boulogne  on  the  river  Liane,  (the  writer 
has  spent  at  Pont  de  Briques  many  a  happy  day  fishing)  inspect- 
ed the  harbor  and  public  works ;  reviewed  the  grand  army,  had 
caused  it  to  be  published  in  the  "Moniteur"  that  the  Comted' Ar- 
tois  had  offered  his  services  and  those  of  the  emigres  to  the  king 
of  England  and  roused  the  French  people  to  a  kind  of  frenzy  by 
rumors  that  the  inhabitants  of  La  Vendee  and  the  Chouans  had 
set  on  foot  a  plan  of  general  pillage  and  incendiarism.  In  such  a 
condition  of  affairs  all  conservative  people,  all  property  holders, 
gave  in  their  adhesion  to  the  established  government  under  the 
impression  that  there  was  no  security  but  in  absolute  power,  a 
strong  man  and  a  strong  government.  They  consoled  themselves 
at  the  loss  of  liberty,  with  the  following  arguments,  which  were, 
says  Mme.de  Remusat,  in  her  recently  published  "Memoirs,"  which 
are  destined  to  remain  one  of  the  principal  authorities  on  the  char- 
acter and  policy  of  Napoleon,  perhaps  justified  by  the  circumstan- 
ces :     "After  the  storm  through  which  we  have  passed,  and  amid 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  I9I 

the  strife  of  so  many  parties,  superior  force  only  can  give  us  liberty, 
and  so  long  as  that  force  tends  to  promote  principles  of  order  and 
morality,  we  ought  not  to  regard  ourselves  as  straying  from  the 
right  road  ,  for  the  creator  will  disappear  but  that  which  he  has 
created  will  remain  with  us."  This  was  order,  though  Napoleon 
claimed  that  with  the  French  Empire  in  Europe,  began  the  age  of 
civilization,  of  science,  of  light  and  of  law. 

Three  quarters  of  a  century  have  passed  away  and  what  was  ar- 
gument in  1804-5  h^s  become  fact  in  1880.  Four  Napoleons  have 
perished  and  the  idea  represented  by  the  last  one,  that  of  impe- 
rialism, which  was  a  menace  to  the  present  Republican  government 
and  to  order  in  France,  has  perished  with  time.  Thus  the  man  of 
the  people,  the  creator  of  equality,  the  rewarder  of  merit  in  France 
has  disappeared  but  that  which  he  created  remains  and  is  now  rep- 
resented by  the  Republic  of  M.  Grevy. 

The  fragment  of  the  Bonaparte  family  still  in  F'ranceat  the  head 
of  which  stands  Jerome,  known  by  the  nick-name  of  Plon-Plon, 
the  son  of  Napoleon's  brother  by  his  Westphalian  wife,  is  without 
influence.  Jerome  is  a  man  of  ability  but  an  indolent  voluptuary 
with  a  decided  repugnance  for  the  active  career  of  a  leader. — 
Strange  to  say,  he  has  always  been  a  Liberal  in  politics  and  is  now 
the  recognized  supporter  of  the  French  Republic.  He  has  no  im- 
perial disposition,  h-as  no  party  of  followers,  and  is  not  likely  to 
create  disturbances.  If  he  were  so  disposed,  he  could  scarcely  find 
anybody  to  urge  his  claims  to  a  throne,  which  at  best,  never  had 
anything  but  a  pasteboard  existence.  The  Bonapartes  have  never 
had  anything  in  France  except  what  was  won  by  the  sword, and  the 
same  royal  road  to  power  lies  before  all  men  of  brains,  audacity 
and  cruel  ambition.  Napoleon  created  in  the  minds  of  French- 
men a  love  of  liberty  and  equality  and  brought  order  out  of  an- 
archy. He  and  his  dynasty  are  gone — that  which  he  created  re- 
mains. 

But  to  proceed.  The  course  of  this  canal  is  nearly  coincident  with 
the  Northern  margin  of  the  Marsh,  is  from  Hythe  to  Rye,  a  dis- 
tance of  about  23  miles.  It.  has  an  average  depth  of  9  feet  and 
width  of  70.  It  was  constructed  for  the  conveyance  of  troops  and 
military  stores  along  a  route  almost  unprovided,  in  those  days, 
with  any  good  roads,  but  it  has  been  seldom  used ;  and  indeed, 
though  begun  in  1804,  it  has  never  actually  been  completed.  A 
raised  bank  is  carried  along  it,  as  a  cover  for  musketeers  ;  as  the 
Ime  is  purposely  made  in  a  series  of  zigzags.  Each  angle  of  the 
bank  was  intended  to  be  defended  by  heavy  cannon.  Military 
stations  for  artillerymen  and  infantry  were  placed  at  intervals.  The 
whole  affair  looks  very  dismal  now  ;  the  stations  are  occupied  by 
coastguardsmen,  who  have  little  or  nothing  to  do  ;  and  a  spectator 


192  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 

is  apt  to  wish  that  something  useful  could  be    made    out   of  that 
which  must  have  cost  John  Bull  a  deal  of  money. 

Leavino^  this  route  at  Appledore,  we  made  our  way  in  a  covered 
cart  to  the  Southeast,  across  the  Marsh,  to  the  town  of  New  Rom- 
ney.     The  covered  cart  is  the  only  vehicle  of  any  kind  which  tra- 
verses the  Marsh — is  the  only  means  of  accommodation    for  that 
almost  infinitesimal  part  of  the  travelling  public  which  seeks  busi- 
ness or  pleasure  in  these   solitary    regions.     Without   springs  or 
cushions,  with  broad,  heavy  wheels,  crowded  with   sacks   of  corn 
and  casks  of  beer,  to  say  nothing  of  a  multiplicity  of  smaller  arti- 
cles, and  tugged  by  ponderous  horses  of  the    Flanders  bre^d.  the 
covered  cart  is  by  no  means  a  rapid  or  luxurious  mode  of  convey- 
ance.    The  traveller  has  ample  opportunity,  seated  upon  a  sack  of 
corn  and  bolstered  by  a  bale  of  hops,  to  study  the  features  of  the 
country.     Stowed  away  in  the  cart  among  a  lot  of  general    mer- 
chandize, we  commenced  our  journey  at  the  rate  of  two  miles   an 
hour.     Some  ladies  who  were  in  the  party,  were   sadly   dejected 
and  wonderous  fidgety  at  the  going  off,  but  soon  resumed   an   air 
of  cheerfulness  when  it  was  declared  that  our   fashionable   friends 
in  Folkestone  should  not  be  enlightened  upon  the  subject  of  how 
we  journeyed  across  the  English    Australia.     The    marsh   begins 
two  or  three  miles  beyond  the  musketry  grounds,  and  extends  to 
Rye.  It  is  a  rich  grazing  country  and  supplies  some  of  the  best  beef 
in  the  London  market.     The  air  is,  however,  full    of  malaria   and 
the  ague  and  chills  always  present  in  autumn.     The  air  is   indeed 
bad  in  winter,  worse  in  summer,  and  at  no  time  good.     There  is  a 
joke  that  the  marshmen  know  so  little  of  anything  outside  of  the 
marsh,  that  they  believe  the  world  to  be  divided  into  five  quart- 
ers— Europe,  Asia,  Africa,  America   and    Romney   Marsh.     The 
area,  about  44,000  acres,  is  so  rich  in  grass  that  it  maintains    150,- 
000  sheep.     The  whole  district  has  been  much  improved   of  late 
years  by  drainage.  The  marsh  forms  a  kind  of  peninsular,  jutting 
out  to  the  South,  so  low,  that  if  a  fierce  wind  came  from  the  East, 
the  whole  might  be  flooded  in  a  very  short  time.     To  prevent  this, 
a  remarkable  wall  called  Dymchurch  wall,  has  been  constructed  of 
earth  and  rough  stone  facing.     At  about  three  miles  from    Hythe 
this  wall  begins,  close  to  the  sea.     It  is  three  miles  long,    20  feet 
high,  15  to  30  feet  wide  at  the  top  and  spreading  out   to   a   broad 
base.     The  sea-face  is  defended  by  piles,  groins  and  jetties;  while 
sluices  are  formed  to  facilitate  drainage.     The  sea  wall   or  barrier 
was  built  altogether  at  the  expense  of  the  marshmen.     From   the 
interstices  of  the  wall  and  in  the  low  sections  faxatile  grasses  spring 
up  as  also  many  fluviatic  plants.     Arrived  at  Lydd  our  last  dispo- 
sitions were  made  for  visiting  the  principal  object  of  interest  to  us, 
Dungeness  light  house.     It  occupies  the  extreme  southern  point 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENSES.  I93 

of  the  marsh  and  four  miles  of  rugged  shingle  separated  it  from 
us.  Only  vigorous  excursionists  undertake  to  make  their  way  to 
it.  We  felt  now  that  even  the  covered  cart  would  neither  be  de- 
spised nor  rejected. 

"It  cannot  be  done"  was  the  irresolute  exclamation  of  one  of  the 
ladies. 

"What  can't  be  done?"  was  the  response  of  the  strong  minded 
woman. 

"Why"  said  the  first  lady,  "we  can  never  walk  across  the  shingle 
to  the  light  house." 

"It  is  a  mere  excuse,"  responded  the  strong  minded  lady.  "Have 
you  ever  tried  it?  no  never!  well,  we'll  never  give  it  up  till  you 
do"  said  the  vigorous  dame. 

The  hopeful  words  of  this  lady  did  not  encourage  the  other  who 
gave  up  in  despair,  while  her  companion  made  preparations  to 
accompany  the  gentlemen,  saying  determinedly:  "It  can't  be  done ! 
well,  did  you  ever  ?  it  must  be  done,  and  what's  more,  it  shall  be 
done  and  by  this  little  woman." 

Mrs.  Peyton  and  the  first  lady  having  decided  not  to  venture' 
upon  such  an  expedition  they  commenced  making  themselves 
comfortable  at  the  Inn,  as  the  escort  of  the  second  lady,  and  that 
interesting  lady  herself  started  with  us  for  the  light  house.  A  la  ' 
borious  walk  of  two  hours  and  a  half  brought  us  to  the  desired  ob 
ject,  which  with  two  forts  is  situated  on  the  sands  at  Dungeness. 
No  particular  description  of  either  would  interest.  Both  the  forts 
and  the  light  house  are  annually  becoming  more  and  more  inland, 
the  shingle  increasing  in  breadth  and  thickness  at  the  rate  of  a 
hundred  yards  every  fifty  years.  This  process  has  been  going 
on  for  the  last  two  or  three  centuries.  The  light  house  though  1 10 
feet  high  is  gradually  losing  its  value  Already  plans  are  discus- 
sed for  the  erection  of  another  nearer  the  water.  It  would  be  dif- 
ficult to  find  a  more  retired  spot  than  Dungeness.  Visitors  are 
rarely  seen  there,  and  the  light  house  keeper  though  in  sight  of 
the  French  coast  did  not  hear  of  the  revolution  of  1848  until  three 
weeks  after  the  flight  of  Louis  Phillippl.  It  may  not  be  uninterest- 
ing to  our  readers  if  we  delay  for  a  moment  to  give  a  few  facts  in 
connection  with  the  origin  of  English  Light  Houses..  Their  his- 
tory is  interesting  and  curious.  It  was  not  until  1696  that  they 
were  introduced  into  England.  Upon  the  Cornish  coast,  about 
fourteen  miles  from  Plymouth,  there  is  a  dangerous  reef  of  rocks 
against  which  the  Atlantic  waves  beat  and  break  with  uncontrola- 
ble  fury.  These  are  the  Eddystone  rocks,  so  named  from  the 
wild  tumult  of  conflicting  currents  among  which  they  dwell.  Stand- 
ing in  the  highway  of  commerce,  it  is  not  surprising  that  many  a 
noble  ship  went  to    pieces  upon   them  ;  nor  strange   that    men's 


794  RAMBLING     REMINISCENSES. 

hearts  should  have  been  set  upon  devising  some  means  of  giving 
mariners  a  timely  warning.  In  1696,  Henry  Winstanley  deter- 
mined to  devote  himself  to  this  task  and  commenced  work  upon 
the  Eddystone  rocks.  During  the  r.ext  season  he  had  raised  a 
round  pillar  or  light  house  twelve  feet  high  and  fourteen  feet  in  di- 
ameter. He  labored  incessantly  upon  it  until  it  reached  the  height 
of  eighty  feet,  when  it  was  so  far  completed  that  he  took  posses- 
sion of  it  and  lit  his  lamp.  The  first  night  he  lodged  in  his  strange 
citadel  was  one  of  storm  and  tumult,  and  for  eleven  succeeding 
days  not  a  boat  could  approach  the  beleaguered  garrison.  They 
clung  manfully,  however,  to  their  duty  and  finally  succeeded  in 
taking  supplies  to  the  heroic  light  house  keeper.  The  kindly 
glimmer  of  his  beacon,  dazzling  upon  the  troubled  water  was  con- 
sidered by  all  sailors  of  that  day  a  providential  interposition  in 
their  behalf,  Winstanley  soon/ound,  however,  that  at  a  height  of 
eighty  feet  his  lantern  was  sometimes  actually  buried  under  thi 
water.  He  therefore  recommenced  his  work  and  carried  up  xhv 
building  to  an  elevation  of  120  feet.  The  first  Eddystone  light 
iiouse  stood  until  1703,  when  requiring  some  repairs,  Winstanley 
and  some  workmen  landed  upon  the  rocks.  Poor  Winstanley,  in 
his  strong  self-reliance  in  the  stability  of  his  work,  had  often  de- 
clared "he  only  wished  to  be  therein  the  greatest  storm  that  ever 
blew  under  the  face  of  the  heavens,  that  he  might  see  what  effect 
it  might  have  upon  the  structure."  The  night  he  landed  with  his 
workmen  was  one  of  storm,  a  storm  which  is  memorable  in  history 
for  its  wild  fury  and  for  the  fearful  destruction  it  wrought— the 
storm  of  November  26th,  1703.  When  the  morning  of  the  27th 
arose  on  the  troubled  waters,  not  a  vestige  remained  of  the  light 
house,  of  the  architect  or  of  his  men  There  is  a  wide  distinction 
between  presumption  and  courage,  between  self-confidence  and  an 
humble  trust. 

The  next  person  who  wrestled  uith  the  stubborn  difficulty  was 
John  Rudzerd.  One  would  scarcely  have  expected  to  have  seen 
one  with  his  antecedents — for  he  was  a  London  silk  mercer — en- 
gaged in  such  a  critical  miission.  But  so  it  was.  He  commenced 
the  work  in  1706  with  such  energy  and  skill,  that  in  two  years  the 
light  might  again  be  seen  shining  like  a  star  above  the  waves,  at 
the  height  of  92  feet.  This  last  tower,  however,  was  of  wood, 
weighted  at  the  base  by  a  considerable  mass  of  stone  work.  After 
standing  over  forty  years  it  was  destroyed  by  fire,  its  three  tenants 
escaping  with  difticulty. 

At  this  time  there  appeared  a  man  of  real  genius,  John 
Smeaton,  a  native  of  Yorkshire.  He  had  been  articled  to  an 
attorney  and  afterwards  followed  the  business  of  a  maker  of 
-mathematical  instruments.     He  was  the  first  person  who  ever,  in 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  195 

EnLjland,  pursued  the  business  or  calling  of  a  civil  engfineer,  and 
in  fact  may  be  said  to  have  created  the  profession.  He  resolved 
to  construct  a  tower  entirely  of  stone  and  thouiL^h  the  public  au- 
thorities were  opposed  to  it,  they  finally  yielded  their  assent  and 
lent  him  aid.  Having  decided  upon  the  material,  the  next  object 
of  anxious  consideration  with  him  was  the  form  of  his  tower.  His 
thoughts  set  upon  the  study  of  nature's  own  type  of  strength — a 
grand  old  oak.  He  considered  its  spreading  roots,  which  take 
such  a  firm,  broad  grip  upon  the  soil  of  its  mother  earth  ;  he 
studied  the  rise  of  its  swelling  base,  which  when  it  attains  the 
height  of  above  one  diameter,  is  reduced  by  a  graceful  curve  con- 
cave to  the  eye,  which  carries  it  to  a  diameter  less  by  one-third 
than  its  original  base.  Now,  then  it  rune  up  more  perpendic- 
ularly in  the  form  of  a  cylinder,  and  then,  a  preparation  being  re- 
quired for  the  support  of  its  spreading  boughs,  a  renewed  swelling 
of  its  diameter  is  observable.  Now,  (Smeaton  proceeds  to  reason) 
were  we  to  cut  off  the  branches  of  our  noble  oak  and  in  that  de- 
nuded state,  expose  its  bole  to  the  assaults  of  wild  waves  at  the 
base,  instead  of  wild  winds  at  the  summit,  we  have  a  style  of  such 
a  lighthouse  column  as  is  best  adapted  to  endure  the  peculiar 
tests  ol  its  position.  This  is  the  well  known  story  of  the  concep- 
tion of  the  idea  of  the  Eddystone  lighthouse. 

In  1756  Smeaton  commenced  work  upon  the  rock,  cutting  the 
surface  in  regular  steps  or  trenches  into  which  the  blocks  of  stone 
were  to  be  dovetailed.  In  1759  his  tower,  68  feet  in  height,  was 
completed.  The  structure  is  a  solid  mass  of  stone  to  the  l-.eight 
of  twelve  feet.  On  the  i6th  ol  October,  1759,  the  benignant  li^ht 
again  shone  out  over  the  waters,  a  welcome  gleam  to  the  straining,' 
eye  of  the  mariner,  though  it  was  but  rhe  concentrated  light  of  a 
few  tallow  candles.  And  there  was  no  better  light  till  1807,  when 
Argand  burners  with  silver  copper  reflc^ctors  were  displayed. 
Such  was  the  recent  and  humble  English  origin  of  those  numer- 
ous and  splendid  lit^hthouses  now  standing  upon  every  part  of 
the  coast.  Among  the  most  important  ot  those  which  throw  a 
beneficent  glimmer  of  light  Irom  wild  rocks  and  dark  shores  is 
that  of  Dungeness. 

When  reaching  the  inn  on  our  return  we  found  Mrs.  Peyton 
and  her  lady  friend  still  industriously  keeping  up  their  chit  chat. 
We  felt  grateful  to  the  old  maid  for  having  made  her  tiine  pass 
so  pleasantly.  This  worthy  woman  was  unlike  the  pictures  us- 
ually delineated  of  aged  spinsters  ;  her  bosom  was  not  the  abode 
of  indifference  or  malignity.  On  the  contrary,  she  was  always 
cheerful,  useful  to  those  about  her,  the  dispenser  of  happiness  to 
her  circle.  Could  the  reader  have  listened  to  her  interesting, 
gossipping  conversation  he  must  have  subscribed    to   the  opinion 


196  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 

that  she  had  cultivated  in  no  ordinary  way  "God's  gift  of  speech." 
The  evening  was  passed  agreeably  in  the  inn,  the  social  party 
having  been  reinforced  by  two  wanderers  to  this  region,  and 
after  a  night's  rest,  we  again  turned  our  faces  towards  Folkestone. 
One  of  the  previous  evening's  arrivals  was  a  native  of  Kent,  Lt. 
General  Knatchbull,  R.  A.,  uncle  of  Sir  Wyndham  Knatchbull, 
Bart.,  of  Mershani  le  Hatch.  General  K.  had  been  absent  from 
England,  serving  in  the  Indian  army,  the  larger  part  of  his  life, 
and  had  recently  returned  to  enjoy  a  green  old  age  among  his 
kindred.  His  companion,  a  young  friend  of  the  old  veteran,  by 
the  name  of — well,  we  shall  call  him  Von  Humbug— was  a  some- 
what remarkable  character,  of  whom  we  shall  have  a  word  to  say 
presendy.  With  both  ®f  them  we  subsequently  became  well  ac- 
quainted and  passed  much  time  in  their  circles,  both  in  London 
and  in  Jersey,  in  which  latter  place  Gen.  Knatchbull  extended  to 
us  the  hospitalities  of  his  well  appointed  establishment,  Clare- 
mount  Court. 

Suspending  our  narrative  at  this  point,  we  shall  anticipate  the 
future  by  informing  our  readers  that  this  young  man,  Von  Hum- 
bug, was  a  rising  politician  of  the  toad  eating  type.  He  was  pur- 
suing Gen.  K.  with  sycophantic  servility,  hoping  thus  to  secure 
the  entre  to  Mersham  le  Hatch,  and  ultimately  the  social  influ- 
ence and  support  of  the  Baronet.  His  wily  arts  became  in  the 
course  of  time  a  study  to  us,  then  so  little  acquainted  with  the 
ways  of  courtiers.  Von  H.  was  an  embodiment  of  caution,  and 
always  careful  to  be  on  the  right  side  whenever  there  were  two  or 
more  sides  to  a  question,  the  right  side  being  of  course  the  win- 
ning one.  As  a  rule,  Von  H.  pledged  himself  to  no  particular 
party  but  just  as  a  party  was  entering  upon  power  it  was  certain 
to  find  him  heart  and  soul  for  it.  He  avoided  meddling  with 
questions  about  which  it  was  doubtful  which  way  public  opinion 
would  turn,  but  whenever  it  became  evident  that  a  measure  would 
become  truly  popular,  he  would  advocate  it  with  all  the  heart  and 
soul  he  possessed,  which,  however,  was  not  very  much.  Thus  he 
often  got  the  credit  of  being  a  wise  man,  and  a  far-seeing  man, 
and  a  man  who  had  the  interest  of  his  fellow  creatures  at  heart. 
He  was  very  careful  as  to  who  were  his  acquaintances.  It  was 
one  of  his  principles  never  to  have  much  to  do  with  those  people 
who  could  do  nothing  to  advance  his  interests,  but  was  ready  to 
attach  himself  to  the  skirts  of  some  powerful  man,  like  General 
Knatchbull,  whose  arguments  he  would  re-echo,  and  to  whose 
utterances  he  always  said  ditto.  Upon  no  one  point  would  he 
bring  himself  to  differ  with  his  patron.  He  was  perfectly  aware  if 
he  could  bring  himself  to  eat  a  sufficient  quantity  of  humble  pie, 
and  was  careful  meanwhile  to  fortify   his  position,  as  his  patron 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  I97 

rose,  SO  must  he  rise,  until  at  last  he  would  reach  the  pinnacle  of 
his  ambition.  He  was  always  found  hanging  about  in  the  society 
of  those  people  about  whom  there  is  an  undoubted  air  of  respecta- 
bility— persons  of  acknowledged  breed  and  position.  He  was 
rarely  heard  to  say  an  unpleasant  thing,  or  known  to  do  a  gen 
erous  act.  For  petty  offices  he  electioned  principally  after  dark 
and  generally  "spotted"  his  men  before  jmidnight.  It  was  easier 
to  extract  a  promise  from  them,  however,  than  to  get  the  right 
ticket  deposited  in  the  urn.  Von  H.  often  found  that  the  men 
whom  he  had  tickled,  returned  the  compliment  by  "scratching" 
him.  He  was  rich  in  promises,  as  well  as  in  money,  but  it  was 
generally  found  that  those  who  depended  upon  him  got  more 
pleasant  things  said  to  them  than  tangible  benefits  given  them. 
Behind  the  scenes  where  nobody  was  looking  on  he  was  not  quite 
so  pleasant  and  polite. 

Those  who  did  work  for  him  in  secret  got  little  thanks  and  less 
pay.  He  was  ever  on  the  lookout  for  opportunities  to  reap  the 
fruits  of  other  men's  labors.  In  his  business,  he  utilized  schemes 
which  had  been  the  thoughts  of  other  men's  lifetime.  A  good 
listener,  he  took  in  other  men's  ideas  and  retailed  them  as  his  own. 
He  rarely  tried  a  new  scheme  himself  or  ventured  an  opinion  he 
had  not  heard  from  another  and  had  reason  to  believe  w^as  the 
popular  thing.  He  waited  until  it  was  evident  a  thing  could  be 
made  to  answer,  and  then  he  would  step  in.  He  kept  a  sharp 
lookout  for  new  patrons,  for  when  one  patron  could  help  him  no 
longer,  he  quietly  dropped  him  and  played  the  toady  to  another. 
He  and  his  family  never  formed  a  friendship  with  any  family 
about  whose  social  status  there  was  a  shadow  of  doubt;  nor  in- 
deed, did  they  form  a  friendship  with  any  one  which  could  not  be 
dropped  when  convenient.  His  own  and  his  family's  position  be- 
ing weak  they  could  not  venture  to  know  doubtful  characters. 
We  doubt  whether  he  was  capable  of  friendship  in  the  true  mean- 
ing of  the  word — friendship  which  would  result  in  no  gain,  direct 
or  indirect,  to  himself  Certainly  he  would  not  indulge  in  a  sen 
timental  friendship  which  would  retard  his  getting  on  in  the 
world.  And  being  informed  by  his  patron  that  he  was  engaged 
to  be  married  to  a  woman  whose  family  connections  were  only 
apparently  of  the  right  sort,  he  severed  the  knot  though  it  broke 
the  girl's  heart.  But  though  Von  H.  was  an  adept  at  dropping 
people  when  it  suited  his  purpose  to  do  so,  it  was  almost  impos- 
sible to  drop  him.  You  could  hardly  insult  him,  he  was  impervi- 
ous to  slights,  and  would  demolish  without  a  grimace,  any  quan- 
tity of  humble  pie.  He  knew  that  he  could  advance  himself  in 
no  other  way  than  by  sticking  to  people  who  could  help  him,  and 
he  was  too  sensible,  for  mere  sentimental  grievances,  to  throw  up 


rco^ 


198  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 

his  chance  of  advancement.  He  felt  that  a  day  of  reckoning 
mi^yht  come ;  meanwhile  he  would  vent  his  spleen  upon  those  un- 
lucky individuals  who  are  under  his  thumb,  and  whose  brains  and 
hands  are  at  his  disposal.  This  toady  loved  the  applause- and 
good  opinion  of  the  world.  To  this  end  he  essayed  to  get  an 
office,  to  enter  public  life.  Once  a  town  councilor,  a  member  of  a 
board  or  in  a  petty  office  of  any  kind  he  would  take  the  greatest 
pains  not  to  endanger  his  seat.  He  would  express  no  decided 
opinions,  identify  himself  with  no  unpopular  movement;  make  no 
inflammatory  speeches.  He  would  do  his  best  to  conciliate  and 
curry  favor  -with  all  men  and  all  parties.  He  would  never  think 
of  advocating  a  new  measure,  speak  until  others  had  spoken  and 
the  direction  of  popular  currents  could  be  plainly  seen  and 
least  of  all  would  he  think  of  proposing  a  reform.  If  every  one 
else  were  content  to  let  things  go  on  in  the  old  groove  he  would 
be  quite  content  to  do  so  too.  But  if  a  reform  was  imperatively 
demanded  he  would  not  risk  his  popularity  by  opposing  it — he 
would  indeed,  avail  himself  of  the  opportunity  to  speak  m  favor 
thereof  He  always  feels,  for  he  is  still  flourishing  in  the  West 
End,  very  comfortably,  and  mildly  deprecates  any  attempt  on  the 
part  of  the  people  to  demonstrate  that  all  the  world  are  not  really 
so  comfortable  as  he  is.  He  takes  a  rosy  view  of  things  general- 
ly, and  not  even  the  recital  of  the  deepest  misery  can  destroy  his 
airy  cheerfulness.  He  is  now,  after  the  lapse  of  fifteen  years,  still 
constantly  on  the  lookout  for  good  things  for  himself  and  pro- 
teges,—{ox  even  this  wretched  follow  has  come  to  have  followers  : 
He  is  ready  upon  all  occasions,  to  lend  a  helping  hand  to  jobbery 
when  he  can  gain  anything  by  so  doing.  And  all  he  does  is  so 
very  polite,  so  very  quiet,  so  very  meek  !  He  has  never  acquired 
much  influence,  and  never  will,  and  strange  enough,  has  so  far 
never  incurred  the  contempt  he  deserves..  People,  as  we  have 
been  recently  informed  by  an  English  friend,  have  not  yet  dis 
covered  that  he  is  only  a  time  server,  selfish  sharper  and  shuffliniLi 
hypocrite.  They  see  that  he  is  ever  on  the  winning  side  and  ac- 
cordingly applaud  his  judgment  which  has  just  been  fortified  in 
their  opinion  by  his  election  under  the  'liberal  party  to  a  seat  in 
Parliament,  though  for  the  last  seven  years  he  has  been  sustained 
by  Tory  pap  administered  by  Lord  Beaconsfield.  He  is  now  in 
Parliament  but  will  undertake  nothing  but  appear  onlv  as  the 
follower  of  other  men.  He  will  make  his  influence  pay,  however, 
and  will  be  certain  to  leave  public  life  richer  than  he  entered  it. 
Though  in  a  liberal  house  he  will  prove  to  be  one  of  the  worst 
enemies  of  progress,  because  he  is,  and  we  know  him  to  be  so,  an 
enemy  in  disguise.  It  is  somewhat  surprising  that  Englishmen, 
who  are  supposed  to  love  blunt,  outspoken  honesty,  should  be  de 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  I99 

ceived  by  him.  They  are  however.  We  cannot  believe  that  it 
will  always  be  so.  John  Bull  will  after  while  penetrate  his  dis- 
guises, understand  his  tactics  and  be  convinced,  as  other  people 
are,  of  his  insincerity.  Before  this  takes  place,  however,  Von  H. 
will  have  no  further  use  for  Mr.  Bull.  He  will  have  feathered  his 
nest,  be  prepared  to  retire  full  of  plunder  and  full  of  "honahs." 

Having-  sufficiently  anticipated  events  in  the  foregoing  sketch 
of  Mr.  Von  H's  character,  and  career,  we  must  resume  our  narra- 
tive where  we  left  off.  Notwithstanding  the  doubtful  air  of 
Romney  Marsh,  we  were  much  invigorated  in  body  and  mind  by 
a  night's  rest  at  the  Inn,  and  proceeded  in  the  best  of  spirits  to 
visit  on  the  way  back  to  Folkestone  some  interesting  ruins. 
These  are  the  ruins  of  Saltwood,  Landslip  and  VVesthanger 
Castles.  According  to  doubtful  traditions  it  was  in  Westhanger 
Castle  that  I'air  Rosamond  was  imprisoned  before  her  departure 
for  Woodstock. 

The  interest  which  attaches  to  these  ruins  is  greatly  heighten- 
ed by  the  moral  sentiment  which  is  blended  with  them.  These 
degraded  castles,  now  so  charming  in  their  drapery  of  ivy,  were 
formerly  no  better  than  the  strongholds  of  robbers,  the  dens  of 
murderers,  the  homes  of  rapine.  Well  has  it  been  said  that  when 
we  recollect  that  these  castles  were  formerly  the  residences  of  petty 
tyrants,  who,  before  the  royal  authority  was  sufficiently  established 
over  the  kingdom,  from  thence  exercised  their  self  created  rights  of 
pillage,  on  their  miserable  vassals  and  even  over  inoffensive  passen- 
gers who  fell  into  their  hands,  we  imagine,  when  viewing  them,  that 
we  are  contemplating  the  carcass  or  the  skeleton  of  some  huge, 
ferocious  beast  of  prey. 

Time  does  not  admit  of  any  description  of  ruins,  however  inter- 
esting, nor  of  lengthened  reflections  upon  the  sentiments  which 
they  inspire.  Our  leader  was  the  strong  minded  lady  who  accom- 
panied us  to  the  Light  House,  and  she  soon  conducted  us  to  new 
Romney.  Here  we  took  an  open  boat  manned  by  three  fishermen, 
and  setting  sail  soon  made  Folkstone  harbor.  The  glowing  serenity 
that  pervaded  the  whole  prospect  of  sea  and  sky  on  this  calm  and 
sunny  day  was  most  pleasing. 

"The  glassy  ocean,  hushed,  forgot  to  roar, 
But  trembling,  murmured  on  the  sandy  shore." 


k 


200  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 


CHAPTER  XX. 


FROM  FOLKESTONE  BY  DOVER,  DEAi.  AND  CANTERBURY  TO  LON- 
DON— THE  CATHEDRAL —  THE  "ASHES"'  OF  KINGS  —  THE  FATE 
OF  SOVEREIGNS,  ETC 


After  having  occupied  Folkestone  as  headquarters  for  some 
time,  the  porter  was  ordered  in  to  cord  our  luggage,  preparatory 
to  our  return  to  London.  A  square  top  cab  drew  up  in  front  of 
our  lodgings,  on  which  our  boxes  were  placed.  Household  do- 
mestics gathered  round  about  for  a  final  "tip."  Our  kind  neigh- 
bors hastily  threw  open  their  windows,  as  the  news  of  our  depar- 
ture spread  abroad  and  human  heads  protruded  from  them  as  well 
as  telescopes.  Our  cheerful  neighbors  seemed  eager  to  get  a  last 
glimpse  of  the  lady  in  the  new  ''waterfall"  and  the  gentleman  in 
duck  breeches. 

Everything  having  been  settled,  we  jumped  into  the  cab,  and 
soon  reached  the  station,  only,  however,  in  time  to  see  the  train 
slide  out  of  view  with  deafening  shrieks.  Here  was  a  difficulty. 
We  stopped  a  few  moments  to  take  in  the  situation.  The  station 
was  becoming  deserted.  A  few  minutes  later  a  single  porter  re- 
mained No  sound  was  now  heard,  but  the  rattling  of  the  tight 
cords  of  the  signal  post  and  the  murmur  of  the  winds  against  the 
telegraph  wires.  Flurried  at  this  unexpected  mishap,  we  deter- 
mined not  to  be  defeated  in  our  plans  and  concluded  a  bargain  in 
a  few  words  with  "cabby,"  who,  at  the  end  of  something  over  an 
hour,  set  us  down  in  Dover.  Proceeding  to  the  office  of  the  Heal 
coach,  we  took  seats  in  an  antiquated  vehicle,  a  stage  coach,  or 
long  stage  omnibus,  plying  by  Deal  to  Canterbury,  and  were  soon 
climbing  hills  and  plunging  into  valleys  behind  four  vivacious 
greys.  Placing  Mrs.  Peyton  and  Miss  Turner  in  the  interior,  we 
mounted  aloft  and  sat  by  the  side  of  the  driver.  Drawing  the 
duster  around  our  legs  and  lighting  a  cigar  from  that  of  the  gen- 
tleman on  the  right,  we  prepared  to  enjoy  the  drive  and  view  the 
refreshing  variety  of  scenery  through  the  fog  of  our  cheroot. 

The  day  was  fine,  the  air  just  fresh  enough  to  brace  the  nerves 
and  give  us  a  fillip  to  enjoy  anything  of  enjoyment  that  might 
present  itself.  Though  baffled  in  our  effort  to  catch  the  train  and 
our  subsequent  experiences  of  the  road  in  a  springless  cab  drawn 
by  a  jaded  hack,  we  did  not  feel  greatly  de  irop.     The  country  was 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENSES.  201 

soon  reached,  and  we  passed  on  amid  scenes  enlivened  by  pretty 
villas  which  extend,  here  and  there,  from  the  sea  coast  to  Canter 
bury. 

These  villas  and  cottages,  with  their  fanciful  porticos  and  minia- 
ture parterres,  are  veritable  earthly  paradises.  Each  one  of  them 
is  a  little  world  in  itself  All  are  alike  and  each  possesses  its  in- 
dividual characteristics.  What  an  interest  they  assume  in  the 
stranger's  eye  ;  what  range  of  thought  they  call  up  !  We  soon 
passed  these  and  came  upon  a  region  of  semi-detached  villas 
which  usher  in  the  village  —  those  rustic  settlements  every- 
where scattered  over  the  surface  of  happy,  peaceful  old  England, 
and  so  dear  to  the  long  imprisoned  denizen  of  the  city.  The 
green  verandahs,  minionette  boxes  and  pretty  strips  of  garden 
give  them  a  charming  semi-rural  aspect.  The  villages  are  quietly 
left  behind  echoing  to  the  noise  of  wheels  upon  the  rubble  stones 
— the  coach  is  in  the  country  again,  but  one  village  is  scarcely  out 
of  sight  before  the  greys  are  approaching  another.  But  we  are 
evidently  now  coming  to  a  more  important  place.  The  houses 
are  larger  and  more  independent  looking,  the  villas  are  still  semi 
detached,  but  more  imposing.  From  the  summit  of  a  long,  gently 
sloping  hill,  a  wide  extent  of  country  is  seen.  That  fine  old  build- 
ing amidst  venerable  trees,  with  a  well  trimmed  lawn,  stretching 
down  to  the  water,  is  the  squire's  hall.  It  has  a  quiet,  venerable 
air,  and  has  seen  many  generations  of  occupants.  Dynasties  have 
passed  over  its  head — the  Tudors,  Cromwell,  William  of  Orange, 
the  Guelphs.  It  still  stands  unmoved  and  the  old  race  still  sit  by 
the  hearth.  What  joy  and  what  sorrow,  what  lamentations  and 
merrymakings,  have  not  rung  through  that  old  hall.  Yet  it  lives 
on  through  the  social  revolutions  which  are  following  each  other 
so  rapidly,  and  of  which  the  emblems  are  the  steamboat,  the  rail- 
train,  the  telegraph  and  the  gas  lamp.  But  we  have  swept  by  the 
hall  and  the  heavenward-pointing  spire,  where  the  "rude  fore- 
fathers of  the  village  sleep,'  after  exchanging  a  life  of  continual 
labor  for  one  of  eternal  rest :  and  the  school  in  close  proximity  to 
the  church,  where  merry  children,  full  of  life,  romp  near  to  spots 
sacred  to  the  tears  and  sorrows  of  mourners  ;  by  cottages  and 
farm  houses  where  there  are  well  to-do  farmers  absorbed  in  the 
risks  and  chances  of  the  markets,  with  abundance  of  good  wheat 
in  their  barns  and  little  thankfulness  in  their  hearts  ;  by  other 
towns  and  villages  ditfering  in  no  respect  from  these,  and  after 
viewing  a  long  panorama  of  lovely  country  and  rich  and  varied 
views  we  arrive  at  the  ancient  cathedral  town  of  Canterbury. 

The  first  object  which  attracts  attention  is  the  ramparts  which 
seem  of  great  antiquity  and  above  which  gracefully  rise  a  solitary 
column.     Entering  the  park  which  is  handsomely  improved  and 


202  RAMBLING     REMINISCENSES. 

shaded  with  lofty  lime  trees,  we  proceed  at  once  towards  this  spiral 
column  which  surmounts  a  hi^h  mound,  and  find  that  the  ramparts, 
garden,  mound  and  column  are  all  ot' modern  origin.  A  liberal  and 
public  spirited  gentleman,  presented  the  grounds  to  the  city,  and  at 
his  private  expense  improved  them  and  enclosed  two  sides  with  the 
wall  which  is  built  so  as  to  represent  ancient  ramparts.  In  grate- 
ful recognition  of  this  munificent  liberality  the  authorities  caused 
the  mound,  150  feet  in  height,  to  be  thrown  up,  and  the  column  to 
be  erected  upon  it,  to  perpetuate  his  memory.  This  is  called  the 
''Dane  yohn''  from  the  fact  that  the  mound  was  according  to 
tradition  partially  thrown  up  ages  before,  by  a  man  named  John 
who  was  a  Dane. 

Canterbury  is  one  of  the  most  ancient  cities  of  the  Kingdom 
and  has  been  successively  occupied  by  the  Romans,  Danes,  Sa.x- 
ons  and  Normans.  By  the  Saxons  it  was  called  the  City  or 
Stronghold  of  the  men  of  Kent.  For  thirteen  hundred  years  it 
has  been  chiefly  famous  for  its  Cathedral  and  Church   dignitaries. 

In  507,  St.  Augustine  commenced  the  work  of  christianizing 
the  Britons  in  Canterbury,  by  baptizing  Ethelbert  King  of 
Kent.  A  pagan  temple  was  converted  into  a  Christian  Church 
and  St.  Augustine  became  first  Archbishop  of  Canterbury  and 
founded  the  Cathedral  and  an  Abbey.  During  six  centuries,  and 
the  turmoils  between  the  Saxons,  Danes  and  Normans,  the  city 
was  subjected  to  great  vicissitudes  and  the  Cathedral  was  destroy- 
ed and  rebuilt  more  than  once.  It  was  here  within  the  sanctuary 
that  Archbishop  Thomas  a'Becket  was  murdered.  This  act 
caused  the  Pope  to  suspend  the  services  of  the  Cathedral  for  one 
year.  When  Sir  Thomas  a'Becket  had  been  canonized,  pilgrim- 
ages to  his  shrine  became  famous  and  were  kept  up  for  three 
hundred  years.  It  was  these  pilgrimages,  which  gave  rise  to 
Chaucer's  Canterbury  tales 

The  Cathedral  is  built  in  the  form  of  a  double  cross,  having 
two  transepst.  Notwithstanding  the  different  ages  in  which  the 
several  parts  have  been  ended  and  the  various  kinds  of  architec- 
ture employed,  there  appears  nothing  unsightly  in  its  general 
aspect,  but  on  the  contrary,  the  effect  of  the  whole  is  pleasing. 
Immediately  upon  entering  the  church  we  proceeded  towards 
the  east  in  search  of  the  chapel  of  a'Becket  and  where  he  so 
often  performed  mass.  After  his  death  it  contained  the  shrine  to 
which  Pilgrims  of  every  country  flocked.  No  trace  of  the  shrine 
remams,  but  the  pavement  around  the  spot,  where  it  stood  is 
worn  away  by  the  knees  of  devout  pilgrims.  Through  the  muni- 
ficence of  wealthy  visitors  this  shrine  was  most  lavishly  adorned. 
Erasmus  who  visited  it  m  1510  says,  "that  under  a  coffer  of  wood, 
inclosing  another  of  gold,  which  was  drawn  up  from  its  place  by 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  203 

ropes  and  pulleys,  he  beheld  an  amount  of  riches,  the  value  of 
which  was  inestimable."  He  continued  "gold  was  the  meanest 
thing  to  be  seen,  the  whole  place  shone  and  glittered  with  the 
rarest  of  precious  jewels,  most  of  which  were  of  an  extraordinary 
size,  some  being  larger  than  the  egg  of  a  goose."  All  of  this 
wealth  was  subsequently  seized  by  Henry  VHI,  who  at  the  same 
time  ordered  the  remains  of  a'Becket  to  be  burned  and  the  ashes 
scattered  to  the  winds. 

By  the  dissolution  of  monastaries  and  religious  houses  by 
Henry  VHI,  the  possession  of  644  convents,  90  colleges.  2,-^74 
chantries  and  free  chapels,  and  no  hospitals  were  annexed  to  the 
crown.  According  to  Burnet,  the  annual  value  of  this  property 
was  something  over  a  million  and  a  quarter  of  pounds  sterling, 
besides  a  vast  quantity  of  plate  and  jewels. 

It  was  given  out,  in  order  to  enlist  popular  feeling  in  favor  of 
this  measure,  that  it  would  result  in  relieving  the  King's  subjects 
of  all  taxes  and  services  of  any  kind,  and  that  the  revenues  should 
be  applied  to  the  maintenance  of  an  army  of  40,000  men,  3,000 
knights.  60  barons  and  40  new  earls.  Moreover,  that  a  better 
provision  should  be  made  for  the  poor ;  and  for  the  preaching  of 
the  Protestant  religion.  Strype  remarks,  "Nothing  of  this  came 
to  pass,  for  neither  was  there  provision  made  for  the  poor,  nor  yet 
order  set  for  preaching  the  gospel,  and  in  fine,  a  great  part  of  it 
was  turned  to  the  upholding  of  dice- playing,  masking  and  ban- 
queting." Of  this  nnmense  income,  only  ^8,000  was  devoted  to 
the  endowment  of  six  new  bishopries  of  Westminster,  Oxford, 
Peterborough,  Bristol,  Chester  and  Gloucester.  Among  the  in- 
numerable monuments,  tablets  and  mural  slabs  preserved  in  the 
Cathedral  are  those  of  Edward,  the  Black  Prince,  who  died  at  the 
Palace  of  the  Archbishop,  in  Canterbury,  1376,  and  that  of  Henry 
IV,  son  of  Gaunt,  Duke  of  Lancaster,  and  grandson  of  Edward 
HI.  Both  of  these  elegant  monuments  are  in  white  marble  and 
on  them  are  full  length  efhgies  of  the  Black  Prince  and  of  Henry 
IV.,  and  of  Joan,  second  wife  of  Henry  IV.  and  daughter  of  the 
King  of  Navarre. 

Every  part  of  Canterbury  is  worth  inspecting  by  those  who  have 
any  taste  for  the  architectural  memorials  of  the  past,  but  no  de- 
scription of  them  would  interest.  After  a  full  examination,  we 
continued  our  journey  to  Chatham,  so  famous  for  its  dockyards 
and  ironclads.  The  only  point  at  which  we  stopped  between  the 
Episcopal  City  and  the  "City  of  Cottages,"  as  Chatham  is  com- 
monly called,  was  Faversham,  the  headquarters  of  the  English 
oyster  trade.  Though  we  indulged  in  a  bitter  and  a  few  "natives," 
while  here,  it  was  not  to  enjoy  the  luxuries  of  the  table  that  we 
made  a  halt.     On  the  contrary,  it  was  to  enter   the  church  where 


204  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

once  reposed  the  bones  of  King  Stephen.  They  are  no  longer 
here.  When  the  abbeys  were  dissolved,  his  corpse,  and  those  of 
his  queen  and  son  were  exhumed  and  their  contents  cast  into  the 
sea.  The  bones  of  sovereigns  do  not  sleep  quietly  in  their  resting 
places.  Some  years  ago  we  stood  in  front  of  a  plain  grey  marble 
slab,  in  front  of  the  high  altar  of  St.  Stephen's  Church,  Caen,  in 
Normandy.  It  was  intended  to  mark  the  sepulchre  of  William 
the  Conquerer,  but  not  an  atom  of  his  body  was  then  beneath  it. 

The  dreaded  Conquerer  was  himself  at  last  conquered,  dying 
as  every  one  knows  at  the  monastery  of  St.  Gervais,  Rouen,  h 
was  a  melancholy  scene.  His  eldest  son,  to  whom  he  had  bequeath- 
ed Normandy,  was  away  with  the  Crusaders.  His  second  son 
William,  remained  by  the  side  of  his  dying  father  only  long  enough 
to  hear  himself  appointed  to  the  Crown  of  England,  then  leaving 
him  in  his  last  agony  he  galloped  off  to  the  coast,  eager  to  secure 
his  prize.  His  third  son  Henry  who  received  his  legacy  in  monev, 
departed  likewise  to  the  treasury,  and  after  carefully  weighing  the 
silver,  placed  it  under  lock  and  key.  No  sooner  had  the  fatal 
event  occurred  than  nobles,  knights,  gentlemen,  priests,  all  de- 
camped to  look  after  their  own  interest  and  the  servants  set  to 
work  to  plunder.  Meanwhile  the  body  of  the  late  monarch  was 
stripped  and  deserted,  till  the  charity  of  an  obscure  individual 
provided  for  its  conveyance  to  Caen,  where  the  King  had  ex- 
pressed a  vvish  to  be  buried.  Here  his  body  was  refused  burial 
till  the  sum  of  sixty  cents  (sous)  were  paid  to  a  man  who  claimed 
property  in  the  site  of  the  grave.  In  1542  the  Bishop  of  Bayeaux 
caused  the  grave  to  be  opened  and  the  body  of  the  conquerer  was 
found  in  good  preservation,  and  justified  by  its  appearance  the 
reports  of  Chroniclers  respecting  his  tall  statue.  During  an  insur- 
rection in  1572,  the  grave  was  violated,  the  coffin  dug  up  and  its 
contents  emptied  into  the  street.  A  pious  priest  gathered  the 
remains  and  preserved  them  in  his  chamber  till  a  subsequent  in 
surrection  when  the  whole  abbey  was  plundered  and  all  the  re 
mains  lost  but  one  thigh  bone,  which  was  reinterred  and  a  monu 
ment  raised  over  it  in  1642.  During  the  revolution  of  1793  the 
mob  rifled  the  spot  and  the  last  fragment  of  the  Great  Duke  and 
mighty  conquerer  disappeared. 

The  remains  of  Henry  I.,  who  was  buried  at  the  Abbey  in 
Reading,  have  likewise  disappeared  and  no  man  knoweth  his 
sephulchre. 

This  was  true  also  of  the  restless  and  fiery  Henry  II.,  who  died 
at  the  castle  of  Chinon,  near  the  junction  of  the  Vienne  and  Loire 
in  France.  The  breath  was  scarcely  out  of  the  body  of  the  dead 
man  when  he  was  stripped  of  every  rag.  his  apartments  robbed,  and 
those  who  had  lately  trembled  at  his  word    hurried    off  to   make 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  205 

court  with  his  successor.  The  charity  of  a  neighbor  provided  a 
winding  sheet  for  the  body  which  was  removed  for  interment  to 
the  Abbey  of  Fontevraud,  one  of  the  wealthiest  ecclesiastical  es- 
tablishments in  France.  Previous  to  the  funeral,  the  body  was 
laid  in  the  Abbey  Church  when  it  is  said  to  have  shuddered  con- 
vulsively at  the  approach  of  Richard,  an  undutifulson.  The  con- 
querer  of  Saladin,  and  hero  of  a  hundred  fights,  Richard  I.  was 
also  buried  here,  and  Queen  Eleanor  of  Guienne  and  Isabella  d' 
Angouleme  the  Queen  of  his  brother  John. 

In  the  old  Scotch  College  in  the  rue  Desbrosses  St. Victor,  Paris, 
were  deposited  in  an  urn  of  bronze  gilt  the  brains  of  James  II. — 
The  mob  in  1693  broke  this  urn  and  the  brains  contained  in  it  were 
trampled  upon  the  ground.  The  royal  body  which  was  deposited  at 
the  chapel  of  the  English  Benedictines  was  little  less  reverenced. 
At  the  time  of  the  revolution  the  chapel  was  used  as  a  prison,  and 
among  the  prisoners  was  a  Mr.  Fitzsimons,  who  witnessed  the 
treatment  to  which  the  body  was  subjected  and  who  thus  describes 
what  he  saw  : 

"I  was  a  prisoner  in  Paris,  in  the  convent  of  the  English  Bene- 
dictines, in  the  Rue  St.  Jacques,  during  part  of  the  revolution.  In 
the  year  1793  or  1794  the  body  of  King  James  II  of  England  w<is 
in  one  of  the  chapels  there,  where  it  had  been  deposited  some 
time,  under  the  expectation  that  it  would  one  day  be  sent  to  Eng- 
land for  interment  in  Westminster  Abbey.  It  had  never  been, 
buried.  The  body  was  in  a  wooden  coffin,  enclosed  in  a  leaden 
one,  and  that  again  enclosed  in  a  second  wooden  one,  covered  with 
black  velvet.  While  I  was  a  prisoner,  the  saus-c?t/o/fes  broke  open 
the  coffins,  to  get  at  the  lead,  to  cast  into  bullets.  The  body  lay 
exposed  nearly  a  whole  day.  It  was  swaddled  like  a  mummy, 
bound  tight  with  garters.  The  sans  cu/offes  took  out  the  body, 
which  had  been  embalmed.  There  was  a  strong  smell  of  vinegar 
and  camphor.  The  corpse  was  beautiful  and  perfect ;  the  hands 
and  nails  were  very  fine;  I  moved  and  bent  every  finger.  I  never 
saw  so  fine  a  set  of  teeth  in  my  life.  A  young  lady,  a  fellow  prison- 
er, wished  much  to  have  a  tooth  ;  I  tried  to  get  one  out  for  her,  but 
could  not,  they  were  so  firml)'-  fixed.  The  feet  also  were  very 
beautiful.  The  face  and  cheeks  were  just  as  if  he  were  alive.  I 
rolled  his  eyes  ;  the  eye-balls  were  perfectly  firm  under  my  finger. 
The  French  and  English  prisoners  gave  money  to  the  sans-cidottes 
for  showing  the  body.  They  said  he  was  a  good  sanscidottes,  and 
they  were  going  to  put  him  into  a  hole  in  the  public  church  yard, 
like  other  san^-culottes,  and  he  was  carried  away,  but  where  the 
body  was  thrown  I  never  heard."  George  IV  tried  all  in  his  power 
to  get  tidings  of  the  body,  but  could  not.  Around  the  chapel 
were  several  wax  moulds  of  the  face  hung  up,  made    probably   at 


(52) 


206  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 

the  time  of  the  King's  death,  and  the  corpse  was  very  like   them. 
The  body  had  been  originally  kept  at  the  palace  of  St    Germains, 
when    it   was   brought  to  the  convent   of  the  Benedictines.     Mr. 
'  Porter,  the  prior,  was  a  prisoner  at  the  time  in  his  own  convent. 

During  the  French  Revolution  the  mob  further  signalized  their 
hatred  of  Royalty  by  scattering  the  ashes  of  the  dead  Kings 
and  mutilating  their  Statues.  The  tombs  of  the  French  Kings 
buried  at  St.  Denis  were  opened  by  the  revolutionists  and  their 
contents  emptied  into  the  neighboring  ditches.  It  was  only  in  1813 
when  some  workmen  were  engaged  in  repairing  the  vaults  at 
Windsor  that  they  accidentally  came  upon  the  coffin  of  Charles  I. 
A  doubtful  point  of  history  was  then  cleared  up.  for  the  contents  of 
the  plain  leaden  coffin,  on  which  was  inscribed  in  large  legible 
character,  *'Kir,g  Charles,  1648,"  were  examined  in  the  presence  of 
the  Prince  Regent,  (George  IV.,)  Sir  Henry  Halford,  Sir  Henry 
Peyton,  and  others.  Within  the  leaden  coffin  was  one  of  wood, 
very  much  decayed,  in  which,  carefully  wrapped  in  cloth,  was  the 
body.  The  skin  of  the  face  was  found  dark  and  discolored,  the 
forehead  and  temples  had  lost  little  or  nothing  of  their  muscular 
substance  ;  the  cartilege  of  the  nose  was  gone  ;  the  left  eye  was 
open  and  full  in  the  first  moment  of  its  exposure,  though  it  van- 
ished almost  immediately,  and  the  pointed  beard  so  characteristic 
-of  the  period  of  his  reign  was  perfect.  The  strong  resemblance 
■of  the  face  to  that  of  Charles  I  on  the  coins,  busts,  and  especially 
the  likenesses  of  Vandyke  left  no  doubt  as  to  its  identity.  Upon 
removing  the  bandage,  the  head  was  found  to  be  loose  and  was 
held  up  to  view.  It  bore  evidence  of  having  been  severed  by  a 
heavy  blow,  inflicted  with  a  sharp  instrument. 

Nothing  is  known  of  tlie  resting  place  of  Lord  Protector.  Crom- 
well. After  his  State  funeral  and  burial  at  Westminster,  his  corpse 
was  disinterred  and  treated  with  indignity.  His  head  \vas  exposed 
from  the  top  of  Westminster  hall,  while  his  body  hung  froin  the 
gallows  in  Tyburn.  After  remaining  sometime  in  these  positions 
they  were  cast  into  a  hole,  but  no  one  knows  the  locality  of  it, 
though  some  learned  antiquarians  suppose  it  was  near  Red  Lion 
Square,  London. 

The  ill-fate  attending  royal  races — their  vicissitudes  in  life-may 
be  farther  illustrated  by  two  instances,  furnished  by  the  successors 
of  Charlemagne  in  France  and  the  Jameses  in  England.  The  son 
of  Charlemagne,  Louis  de  Babonnaire,  died  for  want  of  food,  in 
consequence  of  a  superstitious  panic.  His  successor,  Charles  the 
Bald,  was  poisoned  by  his  phvsician.  Charles'  son,  Louis  the 
Stutterer,  was  also  poisoned.  Charles,  king  of  Aquitaine,  brother 
of  the  Stutterer,  met  his  death  by  a  blow  on  the  head  from  a  gen- 
tleman he  was  endeavoring  by  way  of  frolic  to  terrify.     Louis  III, 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  207 

successor  to  the  Stutterer,  a  gallant  Prince,  having  cast  his  eyes 
upon  a  handsoine  girl,  the  daughter  of  a  citizen  named  Gormand, 
as  he  was  riding  through  the  streets  of  Tours,  pursued  her  in- 
stantly. The  terrified  girl  took  refuge  in  a  house,  and  the  king, 
thinking  more  of  her  charms  than  the  size  of  the  gateway,  at- 
tempted to  force  his  horse  after  her,  but  broke  his  back  and  died 
on  the  spot.  He  was  succeeded  by  his  son,  Carloman,  who  fell  by 
an  ill  directed  spear,  thrown  by  one  of  his  own  servants  at  a  wild 
boar,  although  the  dying  Prince  had  the  generosity  to  charge  the 
beast  with  his  death.  Charles  the  Fat  perished  of  want,  grief  and 
poison  altogether.  His  successor,  Charles,  the  Simple,  died  in 
prison  of  penury  and  despair.  .  Louis  the  Stranger,  his  successor, 
was  killed  while  hunting.  Lotharius  and  Louis  V,  the  two  best 
kings  of  the  race  of  Charlemagne,  were  both  poisoned  by  their 
wives,  to  whose  little  indiscretions  they  had  paid  too  much  at- 
tention. Of  the  whole  line,  after  a  revolution  of  230  years,  there 
now  remained  one,  Charles,  Duke  of  Lorraine,  and  he.  after  a 
struggle  in  defense  of  his  rights  against  the  ambitious  and  active 
Capet,  sunk  beneath  the  fortune  of  his  antagonist  and  ended  his 
days  in  a  lonely  prison. 

In  England  the  Stuarts  were  steadily  unfortunate. 

Robert  the  III  broke  his  heart  because  his  eldest  son  was  starved 
to  death,  and  his  youngest,  James,  made  a  prisoner.  James  I,  after 
having  beheaded  three  of  his  nearest  kindred,  was  assassinated 
by  his  own  uncle,  who  was  tortured  to  death  for  it.  James  II  was 
slain  by  the  bursting  of  a  piece  of  ordnance.  James  III,  when 
flying  from  battle,  was  thrown  from  his  horse  and  murdered  in  a 
cottage,  into  which  he  had  been  carried  for  assistance.  James  IV 
fell  in  Flodden  Field.  James  V  died  of  grief  for  the  wilful  ruin  of 
his  army  at  Solway  Moss.  Henry,  Lord  Darnley,  was  assassinated 
and  then  bluwn  up  in  his  palace.  Mary  was  beheaded  in  England. 
James  I  and  James  VI  are  supposed  to  have  been  poisoned  by 
Buckingham.  Charles  I  was  beheaded.  Charles  II  was  for  many 
years  an  exile.  James  II  lost  his  crown  and  died  in  banishment. 
Anne,  after  a  glorious  reign,  died  of  a  broken  h^art,  occasioned  by 
the  quarrels  of  her  favored  servants.  The  posterity  of  James  II 
have  remained  wretched  wanderers  in  a  foreign  land. 

We  have  again  wandered  a  long  way  out  of  our  path  and  we 
are  not  quite  sure  that  our  reader  takes  as  much  pleasure  as  we  do 
in  these  flights.  But  what  reader  is  satisfied  to  jog  on  forever  in 
the  same  beaten  track.  It  is  usually,  if  not  universally  the  case, 
that  in  what  one  reads  and  what  one  hears,  one  expects  to  find 
something  with  which  one  was  formerly  unacquainted.  If  this 
reasonable  expectation  is  disappointed,  and  an  author  goes  plod- 
ding on  indulging  in  a  trifling  minuteness  of  narration,    in   prolix 


208  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 

descriptions  and  an  abundance  of  common  places,  he  is  sure  to 
fill  the  reader  with  languor  and  disgust.  Napoleon  III,  at  a  period 
of  excitement  in  France,  gave  utterence  to  the  sententious  remark  : 
"For  order  I  will  be  responsible"  We  wish  vye  could  say  with 
equal  confidence,  "For  preserving  our  reader  from  languor  and 
disgust  we  will  be  responsible."  In  any  event  the  reader  shall  not 
be  cloyed  with  trite  and  obvious  thoughts  as  if  he  had  no  appre- 
hension of  his  own.  Be  it  our  object  to  give  him  something  on 
which  to  exercise  his  reason  and  entertain  his  fancy.  His  atten- 
tion will  be  thus  repaid  and  he  will  not  only  excuse  but  delight,  as 
we  do,  in  those  excursions  through  the  regions  of  the  past, 
which  interrupt  our  narrative,  but  which  do  not  long  prevent  our 
returning  to  the  starting  point.  Whether  we  pursue  beaten  paths 
or  give  reins  to  imagination  we  seek  to  be*  plain,  and  invariably,  v.- 
brief  as  is  consistent  with  perspicuity,  though  this  is  not  always  the 
best  policy,  as  it  cannot  be  dissembled,  that,  with  inattentive  read- 
ers, darkness  frequently  passes  for  depth. 

In  the  next  succeeding  chapter,  clearing  our  brain  from  all  fumes 
of  fancy,  we  shall  resume  our  narrative,  and  conduct  the  reader — 
we  flatter  ourselves  he  does  not  belong  to  the  inattentive  class — 
more  rapidly  forward  on  the  journey  from  the  sea  coast  to  the 
interior. 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

CHATHAM  —  FAVKRSHAM —  ROCHES'lEK  —  SIR    FRANCIS    DOYLE- 
GADS  HILL—  COBHAM  HALL — MSS.  LETTERS  OF  SIR  JOHN  PEYTON 
GOVERNOR  OF  THE  TOWER    AND    OF   THE    ISLAND    OK   JERSEY— 
EDMOND  BEALES — THE  REFORMATION. 


Emerging  from  the  church  at  Faversham  we  saw  the  train  af; 
proaching,  the  train  by  which  we  expected  to  reach  Chatham 
Hurrying  to  the  station  and  stepping  into  a  carriage  we  wer 
greeted  with  glad  surprise  by  one  of  our  earliest  and  best  Eni: 
lish  friends,  Sir  P>ancis  Hastings   Doyle,  professor  of  poetry     r 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENSES.  209 

Oxford,  who  was  returning  to  London  from  a  jaunt  in  France. 
Sir  Francis  was  art  intimate  friend  of  Osmond  Priaulx,  at  whose 
house  we  first  met  him  at  dinner  in  1862,  and  where  we  had  been 
in  the  habit  of  meeting  him  under  the  same  pleasant  circum- 
stances, every  Thursday,  for  years.  He  was  one  of  a  small  co- 
terie of  literary  and  political  celebrities  who  assembled  every  week 
at  each  others  houses. 

Many  of  them  are  dead,  some  are  superannuated  and  others 
have  retired  from  public  employments.  How  melancholy  it  is  to 
travel  from  one's  country,  and  to  make  acquaintance  with  esti- 
mable men  abroad,  whom  we  are  never  to  see  again,  .How  rapid 
a  career  is  human  life  !  Happy  the  man  who  has  it  in  his  power 
to  employ  it  in  doing  good.  Sir  Francis  Doyle  whom  we  now 
met  with,  so  unexpectedly,  is  "a  thoroughly  companionable  and 
delightful  man — not  only  a  poet,  but  a  distinguished  poet.  He 
writes  with  taste,  abounds  in  elegance,  wholly  reproves  the  spas- 
modic efforts  of  the  metrical  manipulators  of  the  age,  adhering  to 
nature  in  a  pure  and  unaffected  style,  replete  with  chaste  and 
classic  diction.  His  impassioned  thought  is  elucidated  and  en- 
nobled in  all  the  sparkling  imagery  of  truly  poetic  and  romantic 
inspiration.  He  is  plain  and  unassuming  in  manner  and  attire, 
would  pass  very  well  for  one  of  the  squirearchy,  is  fond  of  the 
chase  and  the  pursuits  of  the  country  gentleman.  He  has  written 
and  published  a  good  deal  of  poetry  and  some  lectures  but  they 
have  acquired  no  general  popularity.  He  often  referred  in  a 
humorous  way  to  their  failure  to  attract  public  attention,  and 
said  :  "I  don't  know  why  it  is  ;  people  don't  care  to  read  what  I 
write."  It  was  not  difficult  for  us  to  see  that  he  attributed  this 
indifference  to  the  bad  taste  of  the  reading  public.  Though  he 
took  a  rather  saturine  view  of  his  position  with  the  public,  we  soon 
discovered  that  no  one  was  more  favorably  regarded  by  the  liter- 
ary world — his  laurels  were  green,  however  conscious  he  was  of 
it,  though  his  locks  were  gray.  Sir  Francis  Doyle,  in  his  de- 
meanor and  personal  appearance,  is  considerably  above  the  com- 
mon order,  and  is  altogether  a  handsome  and  noble  looking  man. 

Among  the  choice  spirits  in  this  particular  coterie  was  the  great 
novelist  Thackeray,  but  we  never  happened  to  meet  him  at  one  of 
the  reunions.  On  one  occasion,  shortly  after  our  arrival  in  Lon- 
don in  1862,  we  received  an  invitation  from  Edwin  de  Leon,  now 
(1880)  of  Washington  City,  formerly  United  States  Consul  Gen- 
eral in  Egypt,  to  meet  Thackeray  at  dinner.  A  previous  engage- 
ment prevented  our  acceptance,  and  we  thus  lost  the  opportunity 
of  meeting  that  eminent  man  of  letters.  He  was  soon  afterwards 
struck  down  with  disease,  and  to  the  inexpressible  grief  of  a  wide 
circle  of  personal  friends,  and  to  all  generous  minds  and  lovers  of 


r.s.o 


2IO  RAMBLING     REMINISCENSES. 

literature,  sunk  into  a  premature  grave.  Would  that  it  were  in 
our  power  to  say  something  to  do  honor  to  the  memory  of  that 
great  and  worthy  man — this  is  the  best  return  posterity  can  make 
them  for  their  noble  works  and  virtuous  principles. 

To  return :  little  opportunity  was  afforded  us  on  this  occasion 
of  enjoying  the  society  of  Sir  Francis  Doyle.  The  train  soon  drew 
up  at  the  Chatham  station,  where,  after  bidding  adieu  to  our  dis- 
tinguished friend,  we  descended  to  have  a  look  at  the  dockyards 
and  some  of  those  modern  ironclads  which  have  superceded  En- 
gland's wooden  walls. 

Chatham,  which  possesses  considerable  claims  to  antiquity,  is 
one  of  those  industrious  manufacturing  centres  too  much  occupied 
with  the  work  of  the  present  to  have  time  to  talk  of  its  ancestors. 
To  all  not  specially  concerned  in  shipbuilding  it  is  the  most  unin- 
teresting of  towns,  consisting  of  a  vast  collection  of  dreary,  mono- 
tonous looking  cottages,  in  which  are  crowded  a  working  popula- 
tion of  fifty  thousand.  This  mass  of  human  beings  owes  its  sup- 
port entirely  to  the  government  expenditures  at  this  point.  No  one 
lives  in  Chatham  unless  employed  in  the  great  naval  and  military 
establishments.  We  quickly  determined  to  "do"  Chatham  in  the 
shortest  possible  space  of  time,  and  went  to  work  energetically  to 
see  the  sights,  the  sooner  to  shake  the  dust  of  the  town  from  our 
feet. 

A  naval  station  has  existed  at  Chatham  since  the  days  of  Eliza- 
beth, and  by  degrees  it  has  grown  into  one  of  the  first  class  En- 
glish naval  arsenals  and  dockyards.  Especially  has  Chatham  as 
sumed  importance  since  the  introduction  of  ironclads,  the  appli- 
ances for  building  them  here  being  somewhat  peculiar  to  the  place. 
Upon  applying  to  be  admitted,  we  found  it  necessary  to  enter  in 
a  book  kept  for  the  purpose,  our  name,  profession  and  nationali 
ty.  After  this  we  were  conducted  to  an  office,  where  the  order  of 
admission  was  made  out,  and  presented  to  a  guide  who  preceded 
to  conduct  us  through  the  establishment. 

The  dockyard  extends  about  a  mile  and  a  half  on  the  river,  and 
consists  of  wet  docks  for  repairing  ships,  an  immense  tidal  basin, 
seven  covered  slips  on  which  to  build  ships,  a  mast  house,  a  boat 
house,  with  a  store  of  ship  boats,  a  rope  house,,  in  which  cables, 
hawsers  and  other  kinds  of  ropes  are  made,  a  store-house,  a  sail 
loft,  two  mast  ponds,  workshops  containing  duplicates  of  Bruner> 
block -making  machinery,  a  smithery  with  forty  forges,  giving  out 
their  fierce  heat,  and  steam  hammers  ol  50  cwt.  falling  on  masses 
of  glowing  iron  ;  hydraulic  presses  for  bending  thick  plates  for 
ironclads,  a  timber  pond  with  a  submarine  canal  for  floating  in 
timber  from  the  river  Medway.  sawing  mills  with  numerous  verti- 
cal and  circular  saws,  metal    mills   for  making  copper  bolts,  ship 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  211 

sheeting,  and  order  articles  in  metal,  and  various  other  buildings 
necessary  for  the  construction  of  great  wooden  and  iron  warships. 
To  describe  these  shops  and  the  progress  would  require  a  volume. 

More  extensive  than  the  dockyards  are  the  military  establish- 
ments which  cover  an  immense  area  of  ground.  There  are  bar- 
racks for  5,000  infantry,  constantly  occupied  by  invalids  from  India 
and  the  colonies  ;  extensive  artillery  barracks,  with  stabling  for 
their  horses;  barracks  for  a  corps  of  the  Royal  Engineers  and  for 
the  school  of  Military  Engineering,  which  is  established  in  the  sub- 
urbs and  designed  for  teaching  officers  all  that  concerns  siege  op- 
erations and  defence  work.  Likewise  a  military  prison,  where 
from  three  to  four  thousand  criminals  are  confined,  and  various 
hospitals  and  other  buildings  connected  with  these  numerous  estab- 
lishments. The  whole  stretch  no  less  than  two  miles  along  the 
Medwayand  further  into  the  interior.  There  is  nothing  peculiar 
about  them  which  would  justify  a  particular  description.  We  were 
much  gratified  by  a  visit  to  the  soldier's  institute,  an  admirable 
place,  in  which  soldiers  can  enjoy  the  advantages  of  a  good  library, 
and  news  room,  chess  and  bagatelle  tables,  fives  and  tennis  court. 
The  building  is  well  warmed,  lighted  and  ventilated.  A  subscrip- 
tion of4d.  per  month  isdemanded,  the  institute  being  a  private  af- 
fair of  the  soldiers,  kept  up  by  contributions,  and  more  than  3  000 
soldiers  are  members  of  it. 

Adjoining  Chatham,  and  to  a  stranger  apparently  forming  the 
more  aristocratic  or  west  end  of  it,  is  the  quaint  old  city  of  Roch- 
ester, so  famous  for  its  ancient  cathedral,  founded  in  the  eleventh 
century,  the  chancel  choir  and  trancept  of  which  were  added  in 
1 230  by  a  noble  and  wealthy  gentleman,  Sir  William  de  Hooe,  of 
the  Hundred  of  Hooe,  in  the  Jsle  of  Grain  in  Kent,  and  the  exten- 
sive ruins  of  its  grand  old  feudal  castle,  the  battlements  of  which 
are  now  104  feet  from  the  ground.  Though  we  visited  every  spot 
and  fragment  of  this  venerable  monument  of  antiquity  with  the 
liveliest  interest,  any  description  of  it  would  but  fatigue.  The  walks 
around  it  are  sequestered  and  pleasing  and  altogether  calculated 
to  raise  our  admiration  and  give  a  more  perfect  idea  of  this  beau- 
tiful specimen  of  an  ancient  fortification,  but  viewing  it  we  could 
but  exclaim,  "sad  are  the  ruthless  ravages  of  time." 

We  availed  ourselves  of  the  opportunity  while  in  Chatham  to 
walk  as  far  as  Gad's  Hill,  so  notorious  in  old  times  as  a  haunt  of 
tramps,  rogues,  vagabonds,  and  all  kinds  of  desperate  and  aban- 
doned characters.  It  was  here  that  Shakespeare  places  the  scene 
of  one  of  the  pranks  of  Ealstaff,  Prince  Hal,  Burdolph  and  their 
companions.  On  entering  the  Inn  standing  on  the  summit  of  the 
hill  and  intended  to  perpetuate  the  fame  of  the  fat  knight,  we  saw 
hanging  on  the  wall  a  likeness  of  Sir  John,  whose  lips  seemed  to 


212  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 

move  with  the  words,  "Shall  I  not  take  mine  ease  in  mine  inn." 
The  proprietor  of  this  inn  is  a  man  of  education  above  his  station 
and  conversed  with  sense  and  judgment  upon  the  subject  of 
Shakespeare's  plays  and  the  writings  of  his  neighbor,  Charles 
Dickens,  whose  home  is  not  more  than  a  hundred  yards  from  the 
Inn  upon  the  t)pposite  side  of  the  road.  He  told  us  that  Dickens 
was  then  at  home,  at  least  he  had  seen  him  the  evening  belore, 
and  that  he  was  always  glad  to  see  strangers.  We  had  not  in- 
tended calling  upon  the  popular  novelist.  While  admiring  his 
genius  we  detested  his  character.  All  the  world  knows  that  he 
was  a  snob,  and  it  is  generally  conceded  that  he  was  a  drunkard 
and  an  adulterer.  Curiosity,  however,  seemed  to  take  possession 
of  us,  and  in  a  moment  of  freak  we  formed  a  hasty  resolution  to 
look  in  upon  him.  Proceeding  at  once  to  the  entrance  of  his 
grounds,  we  were  met  by  a  decidedly  inhospitable  growl,  and  saw 
in  large  letters  across  the  gate,  "Beware  of  the  dog."  A  servant 
who  answered  our  vigorous  pull  at  the  bell  protected  us  from  the 
idiotic  looking  brute  who  guarded.the  premises  of  "Boz,"  and  con 
ducted  us  to  the  house.  From  her  we  learned  that  Dickens  had 
gone  to  London  a  few  hours  before,  and  that  the  on}y  occupants 
of  the  house  at  the  moment  were  a  son  and  daughter.  Without 
stopping  to  see  them  we  returned  to  the  public  house,  and  settling 
our  bill,  left  by  a  lane  passing  Dickens'  house,  to  make  our  visit 
to  Cobham  Hall.  From  this  lane  running  across  Gad's  Hall,  we 
saw  stretching  before  us  at  a  distance  of  three  miles,  the  wooded 
hills  and  plains  of  this  magnificent  park.  After  passing  through  a 
pretty  and  highly  cultivated  country  where  many  parties  were  en- 
gaged gathering  the  ripe  hops,  we  arrived  at  the  park  enclosure, 
and  crossing  a  platform  entered  the  gr<_.unds  by  a  foot  path  con- 
ducting almost  directly  to  the  hall.  Wandering  through  the  arbor 
walks  of  this  elysian  wilderness,  it  seemed  like  a  land  of  enchant- 
ment. So  artfully  had  the  walks  been  planned,  that  they  seemed 
mterminable,  and  the  grounds  without  limit.  The  beaulirt.il  and 
the  vast  blended  together.  In  a  central  situation,  sparkling  in 
the  sunshine,  was  a  serpentine  lake,  upon  which  swans  of  snowy 
whiteness  floated,  and  towards  which  the  drooping  trees  bent  their 
branches.  Herds  of  deer  fed  upon  the  green  savannahs  blazini^ 
in  the  sunshine. 

Arriving  at  the  Hall,  one  of  the  finest  old  residences  in  this  part 
of  England,  and  always  thrown  open  to  the  public  when  the  famiK 
is  absent,  as  was  now  the  case,  wc  were  ushered  into  the  private 
apartments  and  conducted  through  them  by  one  of  the  servant- 
who  acted  as  guide.  This  place  had  been  in  the  Cobham  famil\ 
for  many  years  previous  to  the  i6lh  century,  and  in  1559  Queen 
Elizabeth   was  entertained    here  in  great  magnificence.      Shortly 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  21 3 

after  1603  when  Sir  Walter  Raleigh  was  dastardly  betrayed  by 
Lord  Henry  Cobham,  who  was  himself  long  confined  like  Raleigh 
in  the  Tower,  and  finally  beheaded,  the  estate  wa$  confiscated.  We 
may  remark  en  passant  that  at  the  time  of  Raleigh's  imprisonment 
Sir  John  Peyton,  of  Doddington,  who  had  been  a  member  of 
Queen  Elizabeth's  Privy  Council,  was  governor  of  the  Tower. — 
Among  the  curious  MSS  letters  of  Sir  John  now  in  the  British  Mu- 
seum, presented  to  the  national  library  of  Great  Britain  by  George 
III,  are  many  letters  written  by  Sir  John  to  Robert  Cecil,  Earl  of 
Salisbury,  who  was  ^ole  secretary  of  State  in  1603.  W^hile  the  au- 
thor was  in  England  he  enjoyed  the  privilege  of  a  reader's  ticket 
to  the  library,  and  time  and  again  spent  a  few  days  searching 
among  this  vast  collection.  The  following  are  copies  of  two  of  Sir 
John  Peyton's  letters  to  the  Earl  of  Salisbury,  in  which  he  alludes 
to  some  of  the  State  prisoners.  And  in  the  house  of  this  very  Earl 
of  Salisbury  we  were  now  examining  the  objects  of  interest  and 
calling  up  the  associations  of  the  past. 

SIR  JOHN  PEYTON  TO  THE  EARL  OF  SALISBURY. 

Tower,  July  21st,  1603. 
Rip^ht  Honorable, 

My  very  good  Lord : — "According  to  y'r  L'dships  directions  I 
related  unto  my  Lord  Cobham.  what  course  was  best  for  him  as 
his  case  now  standeth,  he  being  under  a  Kings  justice,  that  is  com- 
posed of  all  mercy.  I  urged  him  to  use  no  manner  of  reservation, 
which  course  he  vowed  to  God  to  hold  in  his  relation,  which  I 
send  enclosed  to  your  L'dship  as  required. 

'•Sir  Walter  Rawley  standeth  still  upon  his  innocence,  but  with 
a  mind  the  niost  dejected  that  I  ever  saw. 

"My  Lord  Grey  continueth  in  the  same  manner  he  did.  He 
is  desirous  to  write  to  His  Majesty,  which  I  in  good  warmth  de- 
nied, until  I  might  understand  his  Majesty's  pleasure.  Then  he 
entreated  me  to  permit  him  to  write  to  your  L'dship,  whereupon 
I  assented,  and  his  letter  I  send  enclosed. 

•'In  all  these  actions  God  has  shown  a  protecting  providence 
over  our  good  King  and  the  State,  wherein  my  heart  rejoiceth. — 
And  so  I  most  humbly  take  my  leave." 

Your  Lordships  servant  &c 

JOHN  PEYTON, 

Lieutenant  of  the  Tower. 

same  TO  SAME. 

July  23,  1603. 
Right  Honorable,. 

My  very  good  Lord, — "I  must  confess  that  since  my  attendance 


214  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

on  y'r  L'dship  I  have  been  more  than  gratified,  by  your  noble  pas- 
sion towards  my  son  and  honorable  letters  to  myself  which  doth 
double  both  our  desires  to  do  your  service,  beseaching  y'r  L'dship 
to  command  me  as  one  in  whom  your  Lordship  hath  had  and  ever 
may  have  confidence.  The  letters  directed  to  Lord  Gray  were 
brought  by  a  soldier  once  of  the  lower  countries. 

"I  also  send  your  Lordship  a  letter  for  my  lord  Cobham,  who 
in  all  his  speech  doth  in  no  way  spare  himself.  I  never  saw  so 
strange  a  dejected  mind  as  in  Sir  Walter  Rawley.  I  am  exceed- 
ingly cumbered  with  him  ;  five  or  six  times  a  day  he  sendeth  for 
me  in  such  passions  as  I  see  his  fortitude  is  impotent  to  support 
his  grief     Thus  I  take  my  leave. 

Your  Lordships  ever  &c., 

JOHN  PEYTON. 

Tower,  this  23  July,  1603. 

After  the  confiscation  of  the  estate  of  the  Cobhams,  it  became 
the  property  of  the  Duke  of  Lennox,  who  had  the  honor  of  enter- 
taining Charles  L  and  Henrietta  Maria,  in  the  Hall.  During  the 
revolution  and  the  Republic  under  Cromwell,  the  property  was 
despoiled  by  the  Roundheads,  and  after  the  restoration  became 
the  property  of  the  Darnleys,  and  so  continues.  Though  n^anyof 
the  rooms  have  been  modernized  there  is  a  great  deal  of  the  Old 
W^orld  grandeur  about  Cobham  Hall.  The  principal  feature  is 
the  very  extensive  and  select  gallery  of  paintings,  a  large  portion 
of  them  by  the  old  masters. 

From  the  Hall  we  crossed  the  Park  to  the  village,  visiting  lime 
tree  avenue,  which  is  3000  feet  long,  and  the  Mausoleum,  which 
was  built  in  1782  for  use  as  a  tomb.  In  every  part  of  the  park 
the  scenery  is  magnificent  and  the  lime,  cedar  and  oaks  of  majestic 
size  and  picturesque  arrangement.  Slowly  and  silently  we  wand- 
ered over  tl-M3  grassy  lawns  and  through  the  solemn  groves,  anon 
lingering  by  the  way  to  gaze  a  last  farewell  on  that  hoary  and 
time-honored  pile,  to  cast  a  parting  glance  on  the  glittering  towers 
and  the  lovely  scenery  surrounding  them,  pensively  musing  as  we 
walked  along  of  the  deep  and  bitter  feelings  that  occupied  the 
bosom  of  the  last  of  the  Cobham  race,  when  he  took  a  last   adieu 


[Note. — SirfiWPard  Burke  says  on  p.  412  of  his  Extinct  Baronetcies  that  "Sir 
John  Peyton,  governor  of  the  Tower,  temp.  Ei.izabkth,  and  of  the  Queens 
•j)rivy  council  ;  afterwards  in  ihe  reign  of  James  I.  governor  of  the  Island  of 
Jersey  and  (Guernsey,  to  which  office  he  succeeded  Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  was  in 
the  words  of  an  old  writer  "educated  after  the  politest  manner  of  the  age  he 
lived  in,  by  serving  in  the  wars  of  Flanders  under  the  most  able  and  e-xperien- 
ced  soldiers  and  jwliticians  of  that  time.  Amidst  the  sunshine  of  a  court  and 
the  affluences  of  a  large  fortune,  his  conduct  was  so  regular  and  temperate  that 
his  life  was  prolonged  to  the  age  of  ninety-nine  years,  in  so  much  health  and 
vigor  that  he  is  said  to  have  rode  hunting  three  or  four  days  before  his  death."] 


RAMBLING     REMINISCEN'CES.  215 

of  the  hall  of  his  ancestors  and  was  conducted  a  prisoner  to  the 
Tower,  which  he  was  destined  to  leave  only  for  the  block.* 

The  only  object  of  interest  in  the  village  is  the  church,  which 
contains  thirteen  monumental  brasses  of  the  Cobham  family,  which 
are  generally  esteemed  the  finest  things  of  the  kind  in  England. 
Some  of  them  are  five  centuries  old. 

Leaving  the  church  we  returned  to  Rochester,  arriving  there  at 
an  opportune  moment  for  witnessing  some  of  the  performances  of 
that  most  remarkable  of  all  the  beasts  in  the  European  menagerie, 
the  British  lion.  The  British  lion  is  not  one  of  those  unfortunate, 
mangy  creatures  of  African  descent,  kept  at  Zoological  Gardens, 
or  carried  about  the  country  in  a  wooden  box  to  amuse  the  people, 
but  a  living,  two-legged  animal  of  indigenous  growth.  He  may 
be  a  literary  lion,  or  a  political  lion—  a  Conservative  or  a  Reform- 
ing lion,  or  belong  to  some  other  species  too  numerous  to  par- 
ticuralize.  To  whatever  species  he  belongs  he  creates  a  great 
sensation  whenever  he  goes  to  a  public  meeting,  as  on  this  oc- 
casion, or  a  public  dinner — the  people  always  go  to  hear  the  lion 
roar,  or  to  see  the  lion  feed.  Though  very  unlike  the  African  lion 
in  appearance,  his  supremacy  among  beasts  is  acknowledged. — 
Whether  he  roars  from  the  pulpit,  the  platform,  or  the  printing 
office,  his  voice  is  law.  His  mouth  is  as  large  and  his  lungs  as 
strong  as  those  of  the  African  lion,  and  hence  the  British  lion  has 
long  been  regarded  as  the  mouth-piece  of  the  people,  the  exponent 
of  popular  opinion.  The  specimen  I  saw  on  this  occasion  was  the 
Reforming  lion,  in  the  person  of  Mr.  Edmond  Beales,  M.  A.,  who 
was  hereto  roar  to  a  meeting  of  the  Reform  League,  to  denounce 
the  injustice  to  which  the  British  were  subjected  under  their  consti- 
tion  and  laws,  and  the  necessity  for  radical  change.  Mr.  Bright  is 
the  great  reforming  lion  of  the  land,  who  stands  before  the  people 
in  awful  majesty  as  the  peculiar  champion  of  their  rights  and  re- 
dresser  of  their  wrongs,  but  much  of  his  work  is  done  by  young 
cubs  who  beat  the  bushes  and  scour  the  plains,  starting  up  the 
game,  eventually  to  be  brought  down  and  secured  by  the  King 
beast.  Mn  Beales,  M.  A.,  most  decidedly  belongs  to  the  breed 
of  cub  lions.  After  listening  some  time  to  the  music  of  his  voice, 
we  were  reluctantly  brought  to  the  conclusion  that  the  British  lion 
is  not  always  a  remarkably  wise  beast — wise  beasts  are  less  obtru- 
sive and  make  considerable  less  noise. 

We  cannot  afford  space  to  report  the  roar  of  the  lion  of  the 
species  of  Mr.  Beales,  MA.     It  is  enoiigh  to  say  that  he  has  been 

*Lord  Cobham  was  hung  in  chains  and  burnt  in  London  in  1407.  Warpole 
speaks  of  him  as  a  man  whose  virtues  made  him  a  reformer,  whose  valor  made 
him  a  martyr,  whose  martyrdom  made  him  an  enthusiast.  His  ready  wit  and 
brave  spirit  appeared  to  great  ad-vantage  on  his  trial. 


2l6  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 

classified  as  one  of  the  promising  lions,  not  promising  much  in 
himself,  but  to  his  friends.  No  rational  human  being  would 
ever  suppose  Mr.  Beales  capable  of  carrying  out  his  benevolent 
purposes  towards  mankind  in  general  or  the  British  people  in  par- 
ticular. A  politician  who,  like  Mr.  Beales,  promises  everything  to 
everybody  is  not  in  the  way  of  becoming  as  distinguished  for 
deeds  as  words.  The  amicable  role  played  by  this  demagogue, 
has,  however,  given  him  an  unbounded  personal  popularity,  and 
he  exercises  an  immense  influence.  His  power  is  confined  to  those 
however,  who  have  no  influence,  namely  :  the  ignorant  classes, 
whom  he  easily  deludes,  and  really,  therefore,  amounts  to  nothing, 
at  least  in  so  far  as  the  pul)lic  is  concerned.  He  makes  it  of  some, 
value  to  himself,  for  Beales  is  a  selfish  lion  in  the  way  of  securing 
fees  in  the  petty  courts  where  he  practices  and  expounds  what  he 
calls  the  law,  and  in  obtaining  small  offices,  for  which  he  has  a 
great  inclination  and  of  which  he  has  held  many,  in  which  he  has 
acquired  notoriety — not  good  fame.  Such  lions  as  Mr.  Beales,  do 
not  present  a  fair  type  of  the  British  animal.  John  Bright,  M.  P., 
is  of  the  genuine  British  genius ;  it  is  such  as  he  whose  whisper  is 
as  loud  as  a  thunder  clap  and  who  argue  with  strong  teeth  and 
sharp  talons.  It  is  this  type  which  has  been  chosen  as  one  of  the 
supporters  of  the  Royal  arms.  As  such  he  is  intended  to  repre- 
sent the  popular  opinion  of  the  country,  and  when  he  roars  and 
lashes  his  tail,  kings  and  statesmen  know  he  must  not  be  trifled 
with.  He  is,  as  we  have  said,  not  a  particularly  wise  beast.  He 
does  not  always  discriminate  rightly  between  the  false  and  the 
true.  When, Sampson  was  sent  of  God  to  be  the  deliverer  of  his 
brethren,  a  lion  came  roaring  against  him  at  the  first  setting  out. 
So  when,  in  the  present  day,  a  man  gets  a  special  mission  to  de- 
liver mankind  from  some  chain  of  superstition  or  ignorance,  pop- 
ular opinion  is  sure  to  come  roaring  against  him  at  first  ;  but,  as 
Sampson  rent  the  lion  as  if  he  were  a  kid,  so  the  power  and  majestx 
of  truth,  in  the  end,  overcomes  popular  opinion,  and  effectually 
stops  his  roaring.  Truth  is  stronger  than  a  lion,  and  the  triumph 
of  truth  is  sweeter  than  honey  For  as  Sampson,  on  his  return, 
found  a  honeycomb  in  the  jaws  of  the  lion,  so  the  herald  of  truth, 
having  overcome  the  opposition  of  popular  opinion,  derives  bread 
from  the  eater  and  sweetness  from  his  strength,  and  the  jaws  and 
tongue  of  the  people  henceforward  flow  with  honey  in  his  praise 
Nothing  is  truer  than  that  in  the  long  run  truth  will  overcoir.v 
error.  To  time,  therefore,  may  be  safely  left  the  solution  of  thost- 
grave  problems  in  government  with  which  Mr.  Beales  so  rashl\ 
tampers.  We  heard  with  pain  the  leveling  principles  of  this  dem 
agogue,  having  always  believed  that  the  greater  the  rewards  you 
give  to  virtue  the  better  men  you  will  get  to  contend  for  them. 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENSES.  217 

Mr.  Beales  has  given  conclusive  evidence  of  his  character,  or 
rather  want  of  character.  Having  made  himself  troublesome,  if 
not  a  dangerous  man,  in  order  to  quiet  him  he  was  appointed  to  a 
judgeship  in  1870,  and  ever  since  has  been  as  silent  as  the  grave. 
'Enjoying  the  honors  and  emoluments  of  the  judicial  station,  this 
reforming  lion  no  longer  roars.  Keen  as  are  his  optics  he  no 
longer  sees  any  defects  in  the  British  Constitution  ;  he  only  sees  a 
stupid  and  ignorant  people  crying  out  about  their  wrongs,  a  people 
whom  he  complacently  declares  have  only  rights.  This  is  his 
"official  opinion,"  No  longer  a  reformer,  the  learned  judge  rivals 
the  late  Earl  of  Ellenborough  in  his  admiration  of  English  institu- 
tions, as  at  once  the  pride,  the  strength  and  the  glory  of  the 
Fatherland. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 


SEVENOAKS  — MONTREAL  —  THE  AMHERSTS — KNOLE  CASTLE- 
SHOWMEN^ — TONBR1DGE  WELLS  — BATTLE  ABBEY — RETURN  TO 
LONDON. 


A  short  trip  brought  us  to  the  old  county  town  of  Sevenoaks, 
situated  in  one  of  the  loveliest  parts  of  Kent.  Like  many  English 
towns,  Sevenoaks  is  remarkable  for  the  clean  and  tidy  air  which 
pervades  every  part  of  it.  In  other  respects  it  is  in  itself  not  par- 
ticularly noteworthy,  yet  a^  one  of  these  old  places  recalling  our 
forefathers  it  possesses  many  charms.  There  are  few  of  us  who 
do  not  love  to  linger  among  the  dv/elling  places  of  our  ancestors, 
which,  although  now  knowing  them  no  more,  appear  still  to  retain 
a  portion  of  their  spirit  and  exhibit  traces  of  their  true  and  kindly 
nature.  The  country  surrounding  Sevenoaks  is  unsurpassed  for 
beauty  and  variety  of  scenery,  and  has  long  been  a  favorite  retreat 
for  city  people.  During  some  brief  interlude  in  the  monotonous 
round  of  their  busy  lives,  it  is  not  only  pleasant  to  steal  from  the 
'mad'ning  crowds'  ignoble  strife'  to  refresh  their  minds  and  bodies 


2l8  RAMBLING     REMINISCENSES. 

by  a  visit  to  the  country,  but  the  pleasant  and    holy    memories  of 
the  good  old  days,  doubtless  renovates  their  jaded  spirits. 

Some  of  the  finest  mansions  in  England  are  situated  in  what 
may  be  called  the  Sevenoaks  neighborhood.  One  of  these,  which 
possessed  special  interest  to  us,  is  the  old  baronial  residence  of  the. 
ancient  family  of  the  Amhersts,  called  "Montreal."  A  pleasant 
walk  through  cornfields,  corpses,  and  shady  lanes  conducted  our 
pedestrian  party  to  Montreal.  It  was  built  by  Sir  Jeffrey  Am- 
herst,* in  commemoration  of  his  glorious  successes  in  America, 
upon  the  site  of  an  old  manor  house,  originally  erected  during  the 
Saxon  era.  When  approached,  its  venerable  stone  front  is  seen 
from  amidst  a  grove  of  splendid  old  trees. 

The  grounds  and  gardens  attached  to  Montreal  are  not  exten- 
sive, but  the  house  is  a  handsome  structure.  In  the  park  there  is 
an  obelisk  to  commemorate,  as  the  inscription  says  "the  providen- 
tial and  happy  meeting  of  three  brothers,  on  the  25th  of  January, 
1704,  after  six  years  of  glorious  war,  in  which  the  three  were  suc- 
cessfully engaged."  On  the  other  side  it  runs  as  follows;  "Ded- 
icated to  that  most  noble  statesman,  during  whose  administration 
Cape  Breton  and  Canada  were  conquered,  and  from. whose  influ- 
ence the  British  Arms  derived  a  degree  of  lustre  unparalleled  in 
the  past  ages." 

The  following  record  of  the  victories  achieved  in  the  far  West, 
is  also  inscribed  upon  it  : 

"Louisburg  surrendered,  and  six  French  battalions  prisoners  of 
war.  26th  July,  1758. 

Niagara  surrendered,  25th  July,  1758. 

Ticonderago  taken  possessit»n  of  26th  July.   1759. 

Crown  Point  taken  possession  of  4th  August,  1759. 

Quebec  Capitulated  i8th  September,  1759. 

Fort  Levi  surrendered  25th  August,  1760. 

Isle  au  Noix  abandoned  28th  August,   1760. 

Montreal  surrendered,  and  with  it  all  Canada,  and  ten  French 
battalions   layed  down  their  arms,  6tli  of  September,  i;6o. 

St.  Johns,  Newfoundland,  retaken  i8th  September,  1760." 

The  most  interesting  objects,  however,  in  the  vicinity  of  Seven- 
oaks,  are  Knolc  Castle  and  Park,  now  the  property  and  residence 
-of  Earl  Amherst — Lord  Delaware.  It  was  originally  the  property 
of  the  Sackvilles.  Lords  Buck  hurst,  then  of  the  Earls  and  Dukes 
of  Dorset  and  continued  in  the  latter  family  till  1825,  when  it  was 

♦Jeffrey,  Lord  Amherst,  was  born  in  1717,  entered  the  army  1731,  served  un- 
it the  1  )uke  of  Cumberland  1741,  Colonel  in    1756,    Major  General   in    1758, 

i\nl  111  America  against  France  1758,  Commander-in-Chief  in  Canada  1758- 
(o,  (iovcrnor  of  Virginia  1763  and  Covernor  of  Guernsey  1770,  Lieut-General 
177J,  created  Lord  Amherst  of  Montreal  1788,  died  1797. 


I 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  219 

inherited  by  the  present,  which  is  a  collateral  branch  of  the  family 
of  Thomas  Sackville,  first  Earl  of  Dorset. 

The  Castle  stands  in  a  park  of  1,000  acres,  dotted  over  with 
fine  elms  and  large  oaks.  Everything  about  this  old  domain  is  so 
venerable,  and  at  the  same  time  so  poetical,  that  in  pacing  its 
grassy  glades,  one  almost  expects  to  encounter  the  nymphs  and 
satyrs  once  believed  to  inhabit  its  groves.  What  this  splendid 
park  was  two  centuries  ago,  it  is  to  day.  No  modern  innovations 
or  improvements  have  impaired  its  sylvan  beauty  and  it  stands 
preeminent  amid  the  romantic  nooks  of  Kent.  Occupying  an 
eminence,  as  its  name  implies,  the  building  covers  32^  acres  of 
ground,  the  principal  portion  of  which  is  of  the  15th  and  i6th 
centuries,  though  parts  are  much  older.  It  is  considered  by  arch- 
aeologists among  the  most  interesting,  as  it  is  certainly  one  of  the 
most  famous  of  English  baronial  mansions.  Grey,  stern  and  ma- 
jestic, it  is  suggestive  of  those  tirnes  when  might  made  right,  and 
looks  as  if  any  deed  of  violence  might  have  been  committed  under 
the  shelter  of  its  stout  walls.  It  was  once  surrounded  by  a  deep 
fosse  and  lofty  vellum,  but  these  have  long  since  disappeared,  and 
a  well  laid  out  garden  occupies  their  places.  The  spot  which  once 
echoed  to  the  imperious  tread  of  the  mailed  Baron  and  his  half 
savage  retainers,  is  now  covered  with  innocent  flowers,  which  send 
up  their  offerings  of  sweet  incense.  1-ong  occupied  by  different 
families  as  a  residence,  no  part  of  the  buildings,  interior  or  exterior, 
has  been  modernized,  but  are  preserved  in  the  quaint  old  style  in 
which  they  were  originally  built.  It  is  remarkable  for  numerous 
and  extensive  subterraneous  cavities  and  vaults,  which  undermine 
the  gardens  and  are  said  to  extend  in  some  directions  two  miles. 
The  furniture  with  which  it  was  supplied,  with  the  additions  of 
subsequent  periods,  is  also  retained.  Among  this  is  the  Chair  of 
State  which  was  occupied  by  James  I,  when  on  his  visit  to  Knole 
in  1610. 

Passing  into  the  "Stone  Court,"  we  enter  the  "Great  Hall" 
where  is  preserved  the  massive  oak  table  at  which  in  accordance 
with  ancient  custom,  the  domestics  were  wont  to  dine  in  the  pres- 
ence of  their  Lord.  The  hre  place  in  the  Hall  is  of  the  requisite 
capacity  for  roastmg  a  whole  bullock,  the  hospitable  form  in  which 
the  roast  beef  of  old  England  was  served  up  on  strand  occasions 
by  the  great  Baronsv  'I  he  hall  is  hung  with  paintings  and  old  ar- 
mor, weapons  of  war  and  the  chase,  etc. 

From  the  great  hall  we  were  shown  successively  into  the  Brown 
gallery,  Lady  Betty  Germain's  rooms,  the  billiard  room,  the  ball 
room,  the  chapel,  the  cartoon  room,  the  King's  bed  room,  the  din- 
ing room,  &c.,  in  all  of  which  there  are  many  fine  paintings,  curi- 
ous pieces  of  antique  furniture,  tapestry,  and  other  objects  of  art. 


220  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 

The  ceilings  and  stair  cases  are  alike  painted  in  fresco,  and  we  are 
glad  to  say  not  by  Verrio.  The  whole  atmosphere  of  the  place  is 
impregnated  with  the  odour  of  a  bye  gone  age,  and  calls  back  many 
charming  historical  associations  of  our  fatherland. 

Among  the  nunierous  portraits,  many  taken  from  life,  we  par- 
ticularly observed  a  full  length  portrait  of  James  I,  which  well  ex- 
presses in  its  contracted  features,  the  narrow  and  pedantic  nature 
of  his  mind  ;  one  of  Sir  Kenelm  Digby,  the  resolute  seeker  of  the 
Philosopher's  stone  ;  another  of  Philip  II,  the  haughty  and  bigot- 
ed projector  of  the  Invincible  Armada  ;  others  of  Beaumont, 
Fletcher,  Shakespeare,  Goldsmith,  Johnson.  Waller,  Congreve, 
Cromwell,  &c.,  &c.  The  portraits  are  by  (lainsborough,  Kneller 
Jansens,  Sir  Joshua  Reynolds,  and  other  native  and  foreign  ar- 
tists, who  vied  with  each  other  in  the  glories  of  the  pencil.  In  the 
crimson  drawing  room  is  the  original  of  that  famous  painting  of 
Count  Ugolina  in  the  prison  at  Pi^a.  The  story  is  too  well  known 
to  be  repeated  here,  but  the  stern  features  of  the  Count,  tortured 
by  the  pangs  of  hunger,  recall  it  to  our  mind  in  all  its  intensity. 

The  most  curious  and  interesting  room  of  the  mansion  is  that 
prepared  for  James  I,  and  which  is  called  the  King's  bed  room. — 
On  the  wail  in  well  wrought  tapestry  is  told  the  story  of  Nebuch- 
adnezzer.  The  bed  is  hung  with  gold  and  silver  tissues,  lined 
with  rose  colored  satin  and  is  embroidered  with  threads  of  the 
same  precious  metals.  The  toilet  service,  wash-hand  stands,  tables 
mirrors,  etc.  are  all  of  massive  silver.  Such  were  the  arrangements 
made  by  a  fawning  subject  to  entertain  the  King  that  "thrift  might 
follow  fawning."  Our  visit  to  Knole  recalled  Dr.  Johnson's  remark 
when  visiting  Luton  Hooe,  [to  Boswell.  "Sir,"  said  Johnson  of 
Lord  Bute's  home,  "this  is  one  of  the  places  I  do  not  regret  havini: 
come  to  see.  It  is  a  very  stately  place,  indeed  ;  in  the  house  mag 
nificence  is  not  confined  to  convenience,  nor  convenience  to  mag- 
nificence. The  library  is  very  splendid  ;  the  dignity  of  the  room 
is  very  great ;  and  the  quantity  of  pictures  is  beyond  expectation, 
beyond  hope." 

After  spending  two  days  studying  the  castle  and  its  art  treas- 
ures, we  turned  our  attention  to  the  park  which  contains  some- 
-tliing  over  a  thousand  acres  and  many  romantic  scenes  of  hang- 
ing woods  and  green  valleys. 

One  day  while  wandering  amidst  these  Sbenes  we  entered  a 
grassy  ravme  down  which  a  saucy,  gossipping  brook  babbled  and 
sparkled  half  in  sunlight  and  half  in  shade.  The  voice  of  thed.ish- 
ing  waters  deadened  all  other  soin'ids.  and  it  was  nol  until  we  had 
passed  out  of  the  park  and  were  almost  in  the  centre  of  the  odd 
scene  we  are  about  to  describe,  that  \ve  were  aware  of  having  in- 
truded upon  a  convocation    which  was   probably    intended  to  hv 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  221 

secret.     At  a  point  near  the  opening  of  the  ravine,  the  brook  had 
expanded  into  a  wide  shallow  pool,  some  fifty  yards   in  diameter. 
The  water  was  surrounded  by  a  tract  of  waste  land  covered    with 
moss  and  shaded  by  fine  oak  and  beech  trees,  the  survivors  of  an 
ancient  forest.     Their  trunks  were  vast  in  girth   and  were  covered 
with  mosses  and  whitening  canker   stains.      These  old  monarchs 
of  the  wood  had  assumed  all  the  crooked,   deformed  and  fantastic 
shapes  which  betoken  age  and  decay.     Under  their  wide  spread- 
ing branches  had  encamped  a  colony  of  some  forty  persons,  men, 
women  and  children.      The  heavy  growth  of  timber  in    the  Park 
protected  them  from  view  on  one  side  and  a  range  of  hills  covered 
with  furge   separated  them    from  the   highway  on  the  other.     A 
number  of  carts  covered    with  canvass,  a  load  of  dirty  planks,  a 
couple  of  rickerty  old  vans,   or  rather  wooden  houses  on  wheels, 
furnished  with  doors,    windows  and  chimnies,  a    monster  puppet 
show  and    a  couple  of    Punch  and  Judy    rostrums,    had  all  been 
pitched  down  at  random    upon  tire   ground    by    their  respective 
owners,  the  several  owners  having  squatted  their  families  and  their 
properties  in  the  most  convenient  sites.     The  succulent  grass  was 
being  cropped  by  a  cohort  of  half  starved  donkeys  at  the  water's 
edge,  and  here  and  there  a  spavined  horse  burrowed  beneath  the 
moss  in  search  of  more  savory  diet.     On  top  of  the  pile  of  plank 
was  a  row  of  small  dogs  of  the    poodle  breed,  with  their    hinder 
quarters  shorn  to  the  skiux     Some  had  undergone  the   ceremony 
of  ablution  and  were  shivering  with  cold,  while  others,  anticipating 
their  turn,  shivered  from  sympathy.     Near  the  wagon  an  old  wo- 
man smoking  a   short  pipe,  was  busy  washing   in  an    iron  pot  the 
parti  colored  jackets  which   formed  the  dramatic   costumes  of  the 
shivering  canine  performers.      By  her  side  was  a   second  female 
plying  the  needle  and  thread  in  behalf  of  the  poodles,  in  repairing 
their  suits.     The  rest  of  the  company   almost  defies    description, 
and  presented  a  spectacle  which  can   scarcely  be  paralleled  in  the 
whole  experience  of  civilization.     One  and  all  they  had  come  here 
to  make  of  it  a  "washing    day,"  and  at   this  particular  crisis  were 
doing  business  with  ludicrous  energy    and  enthusiasm.     The  pool 
was  the  common  wash  tub  in  which  men   and  women  were  stand- 
ing up  to  their  knees,    and  rapidly  going  through  those  familia/ 
evolutions  necessary  to  the  purification  of  linen.     Every  possible 
rag  which  decency  would  allow  them  to  dispense  with,  had  been 
cast  off   by  the  entire  party,  and    consigned  to  the  wash  ;  and  all 
were  undergoing    the  cleansing  process,  some    with  soap,  which 
seemed  to  be  a  scarce  article,  and  others  with  a  soponaceous  clay, 
found  in  many  parts  of  England  and  well  known  to  persons  who 
lead  a  vagabond  life.     At  the  point  where  the  pool  overflowed  and 
the  waters  went  rippling  down  the  ravine,  a  number  of  calico  gowns 


Ctif^) 


222  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

too  worn  to  stand  the  Tough  handling  of  the  washers,  had  been 
pegged  fast  to  the  bank,  under  the  water,  to  derive  what  benefit 
they  might  from  a  swill.  Some  vestiges  of  shirts  and  spotted 
neck-ties  bore  them  company,  and  a  boy  divested  of  all  covering 
but  a  shirt,  stood  knee  deep  in  the  water  to  intercept  any  that 
might  part  from  their  moorings.  The  drying  was  accomplished 
by  women  on  shore,  who  spread  the  articles  on  the  furze  bushes  or 
hung  them  from  ropes,  running  from  one  van  to  another. 

The  most  prominent  and  remarkable  of  those  washers  was  a  tall 
sallow-faced,  intellectual  person,  with  a  black  beard  reaching  down 
to  his  breast.  The  spectacle  he  presented  as  he  soaped  and  rub- 
bed and  smoothed  on  his  long  lean  arm  what  seemed  to  be  the  re- 
mains of  a  lady's  lawn  collar,  was  decidedly  grotesque  and  inhar- 
monious. He  pursued  his  work  with  a  gravity  which  contrasted 
strongly  with  the  frivolity  of  his  occupation,  but  no  one  seemed 
conscious  that  there  was  anything  ridiculous  or  incongruous  in 
the  affair,  and  without  exception  pursued  their  occupation  with  an 
order  and  industry  which  promised  a  speedy  and  satisfactory  re- 
sult. 

But  this  indispensable  operation  of  washing  was  by  no  means 
the  only  occupation  of  the  hour.  At  a  short  distance  a  fiddler 
was  rehairing  his  bow  from  the  tail  of  a  spavined  horse  :  the  own- 
er ofa  bass  drum  was  cobbling  the  leather  braces  and  casting  lu- 
gubrious glances  at  a  yawning  fracture  in  the  tympan.  A  com- 
mittee of  drivers  were  holding  council  over  a  delapidated  vehicle, 
while  axe  and  saw,  hammer  and  nails  were  at  work  on  the  crazy 
carts  and  vans  ;  the  peep  show  completely  disembowled,  disclosed 
its  mysteries  to  unheeding  eyes,  while  the  owner  pottering  among 
the  strings  and  pulleys,  sought  to  repair  the  dislocated  machinery. 
All  the  while  a  hideous  booing  and  braying  arose  from  a  distant 
part  of  the  ground,  where  a  musician  was  tuning  his  monster  ma- 
chine, and  anything  more  dismal  than  the  wail  of  the  single  notes 
as  they  waved  and  wavered  in  unison  could  not  be  imagined. 

Of  course  we  had  been  too  long  in  England  to  require  any  ex- 
planation of  this  singular  scene.  We  saw  at  once  that  all  these 
were  but  the  necessary  prelitninaries  to  a  country  fair,  which  was 
to  come  off  the  next  day.  They  inlormed  us  that  they  came  this 
round  regularly  twice  a  year,  and  never  without  having  a  washing 
day  at  the  brook.  They  were  lodged  in  the  barn  (where  a  hun- 
dred were  usually  furnished  with  quarters  for  the  night)  belonging 
to  the  Inn  keeper,  who  charged  them  nothing  for  this  accommo- 
dation provided  they  paid  their  score  for  gin.  Unless  their  wine 
bill  is  discharged  a  portion  of  their  property  is  detained.  Upon 
the  occasion  when  we  saw  them,  one  of  their  favorite  performing 
poodles  was  held  by  the   I«n  keeper  as  security  for    2s  6d.     The 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  223 

showmen  said  they  would  redeem  him  from  their  first  takin_o:s  at 
the  fair  of  the  next  day.  After  leavincr  the  party  we  passed  the 
Inn  and  remained  long  enough  to  verify  what  the  showman  had 
said.  On  approaching  the  building  we  heard  the  plaintive  notes 
of  the  whining  hostage,  and  on  entering  the  top  room  found  the 
poor  poodle  tied  up  in  the  bar.  I  he  publican  said  these  strolling 
actors  and  showmen  were  not  worse  as  to  morals  than  the  run  of 
his  customers.  That  some  of  the  men  drank  hard,  to  be  sure,  but 
that  was  the  exception  and  not  the  rule  ;  that  as  a  class  they  like 
nothing  better  than  a  hot  supper  and  plentiful  supply  of  edibles, 
after  taking  which  with  a  "night  cap"  of  hot  gin,  they  turn  into 
the  clean  straw  of  the  sheltering  barn. 

The  following  day  we  saw  at  the  fair  the  entire  party  we  had 
seen  at  the  pool.  They  had  arrived  during  the  night  and  selected 
their  ground,  arousing  the  town  from  sleep  by  the  hammering, 
lumbering  and  din  of  the  preparations.  The  best  sites  had  been 
monopolized  by  the  first  comers  who  had  erected  their  booths, 
stages,  &c.  during  the  night,  thus  securing  the  entire  day  for  bus 
iness.  As  the  multitudes  do  not  crowd  to  the  fair  until  evening, 
there  is  no  particular  advantage  in  this  haste.  But  we  will  not 
enter  upon  the  details  of  the  country  fair  ;  they  are  familiar  to  ev- 
ery one,  its  fun,  its  folly  and  its  sin.  Among  all  the  curious  peo- 
ple attending  it  none  were  more  curious  than  our  acquaintances 
of  the  washing  pool.  Here  was  the  bold  musician  who  had  made 
the  yesterday  hideous  with  his  booing  and  braying  machine,  which 
was  now  all  polished  and  varnished,  grinding  away  at  his  instru- 
ment with  a  roar  that  filled  the  whole  ground.  Surrounding  him 
was  an  open-mouthed  audience,  devouring  the  inexplicable  drama 
performed  by  the  little  wooden  figures,  which  dance,  twirl,  run  and 
fight  together,  by  the  mere  turning  of  the  handle,  while  among 
the  audience  the  grinder's  little  daughter,  her  head  covered  with 
a  tiara,  and  her  breast  covered  with  a  white  handkerchief,  thrust 
herself  and  her  tambourine  in  hopes  of  pennits.  Conspicuous 
among  the  performing  dogs,  all  dressed  in  colors  and  spangles, 
moving  in  a  minuet  to  the  music  of  pipes,  and  the  big  drum,  with 
the  cobbled  tympan,  was  the  captive  of  yesterday.  And  there 
was  the  sallow-faced,  long  bearded  philosopher,clad  in  the  courtly 
professional  garb  of  centuries  past — a  peaked  hat  upon  his  head, 
a  waving  mantle  falling  over  his  limbs  and  beneath  his  chin,  form- 
ing a  showy  background  to  his  long,  black  beard,  a  pointed  Van- 
dyke collar,  which  is  recognized  at  once  as  the  identical  gem  he 
was  yesterday  washing  with  such  deliberate  gravity.  He  was 
here  as  Esculapius,  and  with  pill  box  in  hand  discoursed  "in  words 
of  learned  length  and  thundering  sound"  on  the  ills  that  flesh  is 
heir  to  and  the  merits  of  his  medicaments,  while  a   boy  at  his  feet 


224  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 

makes  all  sorts  of  horrible  grimaces  of  countenance,  contortions  of 
face  in  exemplification  of  the  sufferings  of  those  who  have  not  tried 
the  Doctor's  remedies.  Near  is  the  traveling  theatre  with  its  gauzy 
panorama  forty  feet  long  and  twenty  high,  on  whose  broad  plat- 
form fools  and  clowns,  and  mummers  and  harlequins  and  shameless 
women  dance  and  shout  a  reel  and  whirl  in  one  mad  rage  togeth- 
er, all  affording  the  merest  foretaste  of  the  indecency  and  fooleries 
within.  This  is  the  grandest  of  the  temples  of  pleasure,  and  is 
flanked  by  the  dancing  and  drinking  booths,  where  drunkenness 
and  wantonness  go  hand  in  hand. 

These  strolling  showmen  form  but  a  part  of  that  numerous  class 
or  varieties  of  classes  who  prefer  the  charms  of  a  wandering  life  to 
any  other,  and  who  have  a  rooted  antipathy  to  in-door  life  and 
regular  occupation.  Some  of  these  are  known  as  "tramps,"  and 
pass  their  lives  in  traversing  the  Kingdom,  professedly  in  search  of 
employment.  They  are  rarely  expert  and  for  the  most  part  loathe 
the  work  they  seek.  The  confirmed  tramp  would  upon  no  account 
confine  himself  to  one  spot,  so  fixed  with  him  is  the  habit  of  vag- 
abondage. To  this  class  belong  the  itenerant  tinkers,  the  knife 
grinders,  the  cane  chair  plaiters,  the  umbrella  menders,  the  rat 
catchers,  vermin  hunters  and  the  whole  tribe  of  unlicensed 
hawkers.  Some  years  ago  we  saw  one  of  these  cane  chair  plaiters 
industriously  plying  his  occupation  in  the  crowded  thoroughfares 
of  Liverpool  and  months  afterwards  recognized  him  in  a  Sea  Side 
village  inn  Hants.  It  is  impossible  to  reduce  them  into  settled  hab- 
its and  indeed  no  one  seems  to  care  to  take  the  trouble,  though  all 
are  aware  that  from  all  their  barter  Her  Majesty's  exchequer  is  none 
the  richer,  that'they  contribute  nothing  to  the  support  of  society. 
Notwithstanding  the  strange  spectacles  witnessed  at  the  fairs,  the 
strangest  of  all  is  the  people  themselves,  or  as  Pope  expresses  it, 

"Lee  bear  or  elephant  be  e'er  so  white, 
The  people,  sure  the  people  are  the  sight." 

Here  we  must  dismiss  the  subject.  Our  plan  does  not  admit  of 
our  entering  upon  the  relations  which  the  vagabond  tribes  bear  to 
and  the  influence  they  exercise  upon  that  portion  of  society  with 
which  they  are  brought  in  contact.  The  subject  will  be  better 
treated  by  those  who  give  themselves  to  the  consideration  and 
elucidation  of  social  questions. 

Proceeding  by  a  route  we  had  previously  decided  upon,  a  most 
circuitous  one  considering  that  London  was  the  ultimate  object,  we 
arrived  the  day  after  leaving  Sevenoaks  at  Battle,  having  delayed 
on  the  way  only  long  enough  to  take  a  draught  from  the  celebra- 
ted ferruginous  spring  of  Tonbridge  wells  and  to  visit  Penhurst, 
commonly  called  the  home  of  the  Sydneys.     In  the   environs   ot 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENSES.  225 

Tonbridge  we  visited  some  curious  rocks  from  40  to  70  feet  high, 
containing  many  singular  clifts  and  caverns.  One  of  these  which 
is  known  as  the  Bell  Rock,  emits  a  clear,  ringing  sound  when 
struck.  The  lap  dog  of  a  lady  named  Bow,  fell  through  a  chasm 
in  this  rock  during  the  last  century,  an  event  which  she  caused  to 
be  commemorated  in  the  following  inscription  : 

"This  scratch  I  make  that  you  may  know 
On  this  rock  lies. ye  beauteous  Bow; 
Reader,  this  rock  is  the  Bow's  Bell, 
Strik't  with  thy  stick  and  ring  his  knell.'' 

Penhurst  Park  was  at  the  time  of  the  Norman  conquest  the  res- 
idence of  the  Penchester  family  and  so  continued  for  two  centuries 
later.  It  then  passed  to  the  Dukes  of  Buckingham,  subsequently 
to  the  Dukes  of  Northumberland  and  was  finally  inherited  by  that 
grand  old  gentleman,  the  pride  of  the  court  of  Elizabeth,  Sir  Philip 
Sydney. 

Great  interest  attaches  to  Penhurst  as  the  home  of  the  Sidneys,, 
and  especially  of  the  Countess  of  Pembroke,  "the  subject  of  all 
verse,  Sidney's  sister."  This  accomplished  woman  was  born  about 
the  middle  of  the  i6th  century  and  was  reared  with  the  utmost 
care,  particular  attention  having  been  paid  to  her  education.  She 
made  remarkable  progress  in  every  branch  of  learning  and  became 
the  brightest  star  in  the  galaxy  of  brilliant  and  talented  women 
who  ornamented  the  Court  of  Elizabeth.  At  this  time  one  of  the 
•most  conspicuous  men  for  his  rank,  religion  and  learning  among 
Elizabeth's  courtiers,  was  the  Earl  of  Pembroke.  A  mutual  at- 
tachment sprung ^p  between  them,  and  in  1576  they  were  married. 
Shortly  after  in  conjunction  with  her  brother,  Sir  Philip  Sydney, 
she  composed  \\\&  Arcadia,  a  work  of  superior  merit,  though  al- 
most entirely  neglected  in  the  present  day.  Her  fame  as  a  poet, 
however,  rests  on  her  version  of  the  Psalms,  which  were  likewise 
written  in  conjunction  with  her  distinguished  brother.  Up  to  the 
appearance  of  her  work  only  two  metrical  versions  of  the  entire 
Psalms  had  been  attempted  :  the  first,  the  well-known  translation  by 
Sternhold  &  Hopkins,  and  the  second  by  Archbishop  Parker.  Both 
were  inferior  in  vigor,  dignity  and  poetic  spirit  to  that  by  the  Sid- 
neys. As  a  specimen  of  the  excellence  of  her  version  we  shall 
here  reproduce  the  opening  of  that  truly  magnificent  Psalm,  the 
i3gth,  and  her  version  has  never  been  surpassed  : 

PSALM  CXXXIX— PART  I. 
O'  Lord  !  in  me  there  lieth  nought, 
But  to  thy  search  revealed  lies  ; 
For  when  I  sit' 


(^n^ 


226  RAMBLING    REMINISCENSES. 

Thou  markest  it, 
No  less  thou  notest  when  I  rise  ; 
Yea,  closest  closet  of  my  thought 
Hath  open  windows  to  thine  eyes. 

Thou  walkest  with  me  when  I  walk, 
When  to  my  bed  for  rest  I  go, 
I  find  thee  there. 
And  everywhere: 
Not  youngest  thought  in  me  doth  grow, 
No,  not  one  word  I  cast  to  talk. 
But  yet  unuttered  thou  dost  know. 

To  shun  thy  notice,  leave  thine  eye, 
O  whither  might  I  take  my  way? 
To  starry  sphere  ? 
Thy  throne  is  there. 
To  dead  men's  undelightsome  stay  ? 
There  is  Thy  walk,  and  there  to  lie 
Unknown,  in  vain  I  should  essay. 

O  Sun !  whom  light  nor  flight  can  match. 
Suppose  thy  lightful,  flightful  wings 
Thou  lend  to  me, 
And  I  could  flee. 
As  far  as  thee  the  evening  brings  ; 
Ev'n  led  to  west  he  would  me  catch. 
Nor  should  I  lurk  with  western  thii%s. 

Do  thou  thy  best,  O  secret  night 
In  sable  veil  to  cover  me; 
Thy  sable  veil 
Shall  vainly  fail : 
With  day  unmask'd  my  night  shall  be; 
For  night  is  day,  and  darkness  light, 
O  Father  of  all  lights  to  Thee. 

As  a  prose  writer  she  was  equally  elec^ant  in  style.  The  follow 
ing  lines,  quoted  from  her  translation  of  Philip  de  Mornay's  "Dis 
course  of  Life  and  Death"  will  satisfactorily  establish  the  foct. 

"It  seems  to  me  strange  and  a  thing  much  to  be  marveled,  thai 
the  labourer  to  repose  himself  hasteneth  as  it  were  the  course  ot 
the  sun  ;  that  the  mariner  rows  with  all  his  force  to  obtain  the  port, 
and  with  a  joyful  cry  salutes  the  descried  land  ;  that  the  traveller 
is  never  quiet  nor  content  till  he  be  at  the  end  of  his  voyage,  and 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  227 

that  we,  in  the  meanwhile  tied  in  this  world  to  a  perpetual  task, 
tossed  with  continual  tempests,  tired  with  a  rough  and  cumbersome 
way,  cannot  yet  see  the  end  of  our  labour  but  with  grief,  nor  be- 
hold our  port  but  with  tears,  nor  approach  our  home  and  quiet 
abode  but  with  horror  and  trembling.  This  life  is  but  a  Penelope's 
web,  wherein  we  are  always  doing  and  undoing ;  a  sea  open  to  all 
winds,  which  sometimes  within,  sometimes  without  never  ceases  to 
torment  us,  a  weary  journey  through  extreme  heats  and  colds, 
over  high  mountains,  steep  rocks  and  thievish  deserts.  And  so 
we  term  it  weaving  this  web,  in  rowing  at  this  oar,  in  passing  this 
miserable  way.  Yet  lo,  when  death  comes  to  end  our  work,  when 
she  stretcheth  out  her  arms  to  pull  us  into  the  port  ;  when  after  so 
many  dangerous  passages  and  loathsome  lodgings,  she  would  con- 
duct us  to  our  true  home  and  resting  place  :  instead  of  rejoicing 
at  the  end  of  our  labour,  of  taking  comfort  at  thesight  of  our  land, 
of  singing  at  the  approach  of  our  happy  mansion,  we  would  (who 
would  believe  it?)  retake  our  work  in  hand,  we  would  again  hoist 
sail  to  the  wind,  and  willingly  undertake  our  journey  anew.  No 
more  then  remember  we  our  pains  ;  our  shipwrecks  and  dangers 
are  forgotten  ;  we  fear  no  more  the  travails  and  the  thieves.  Con- 
trawise,  we  apprehend  death  as  an  extreme  pain,  we  doubt  it  as  a 
rock,  we  fly  it  as  a  thief  We  do  as  little  children,  who  all  the  day 
complain,  and  when  the  medicine  is  brought  them,  are  no  longer 
sick  ;  as  they  who  all  the  week  long  run  up  and  down  the  streets 
with  pain  of  the  teeth,  and  seeing  the  barber  coming  to  pull  them 
out,  feel  no  more  pain.  We  fear  more  the  cure  than  the  disease; 
the  surgeon  than  the  pain.  We  have  more  sense  of  the  medi- 
cine's bitterness,  soon  gone,  than  of  a  bitter  languishing,  long  con- 
tinued ;  more  feelmg  of  death,  the  end  of  our  miseries,  than  the 
endless  misery  of  our  life.  We  fear  that  we  ought  to  hope  lor. 
and  wish  for  that  we  ought  to  fear." 

Her  profound  knowledge  of  the  Hebrew  tongue  and  the  classic 
languages — the  models  necessary  to  a  perfect  knowledge  of  poe- 
try— made  her  the  admiration  of  the  scholars  of  the  age.  Among 
the  truest  admirers  of  her  genius  and  virtu-es  was  Spencer,  the  first 
poet  of  the  time.  To  her  intellectual  gifts  she  joined  rare  personal 
charms,  which  were  celebrated  by  Ben  Johnson.  After  a  life  pro- 
tracted to  an  advanced  age  and  twenty  years  of  widowhood  she 
died  September  25th,  162 1,  and  was  buried  in  Salisbury  Cathedral, 
and  though  no  monument  was  ever  erected  to  her  memory, 
she  has  been  honored  with  an  epitaph,  perhaps  better  known 
than  any  other  which  has  graced  the  annals  of  the  land,  and 
which  cannot  fail  to  perpetuate,  in  colors  durable  as  the  language 
in  which  it  is  written,  her  beauty,  virtue,  and  mental  endow- 
ments 


228  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 

Underneath  this  sable  hearse 

Lies  the  subject  of  all  verse  ; 

Sidney's  sister,  Pembroke's  mother. 

Death,  ere  thou  hast  kill'd  another, 

Fair  and  learn'd,  and  good  as  she, 

Time  shall  throw  a  dart  at  thee. 
Let  us  add  a  word  as  to  Sir  Philip  Sidney  who  was  one  of  Eng- 
land's greatest,  noblest  men.  His  father,  Sir  Henry  Sidney,  was 
an  Irish  gentleman  who  married  a  daughter  of  the  Duke  of  North- 
umberland, and  Philip  was  born  at  Penhursl,in  1554.  At  the  age 
of  twenty-five,  he  became  one  of  the  most  highly  trusted  counsel- 
lors of  Elizabeth,  by  whom  he  was  sent  as  Ambassador  to  the 
Emperor  of  Austria. 

He  proved  one  of  her  wisest  advisers  a  few  years  later  when 
the  Duke  of  Anjou  sought  her  hand  in  marriage.  Though  the 
Queen  was  25  years  older  than  the  Duke,  he  visited  England  to 
press  his  suit  in  person  and  paid  the  Queen  a  secret  visit  at  Green- 
wich. Though  he  was  not  handsome,  his  manners  were  pleasing, 
and  he  made  a  decided  impression  on  her  heart.  The  Queen  ord- 
ered her  ministers  to  fix  the  terms  of  the  marriage  settlement ; 
and  a  day  was  appointed  for  the  nuptials.  The  wisest  of  her  ad- 
visers, Sir  Philip  Sidney,  saw  the  necessity  of  averting  a  step  which 
might  have  been  very  prejudicial  to  the  interest  of  England,  and 
had  the  courage  to  address  a  letter  to  her,  in  which  he  dissuaded 
her  from  the  match  with  such  force  of  reasoning,  that  her  resolu- 
tion was  shaken.  She  became  irresolute  and  melanchoUy  as  the 
day  of  marriage  drew  near,  and  is  said  to  have  passed  several 
sleepless  nights.  The  advice  of  Sir  Philip  prevailed  and  the  Duke 
of  Anjou  was  dismissed. 

In  1585,  an  P^nglish  army  under  the  famous  Earl  of  Leicester, 
was  sent  to  Holland  to  aid  the  Prince  of  Orange.  The  Earl  was 
a  poor  general,  and  did  little  for  the  cause,  but  Sir  Philip  Sidney 
so  greatly  distinguished  himself  by  his  courage  and  conduct,  that 
his  reputation  rose  to  the  highest  pitch  throughout  Europe.  He 
was  invited  to  accept  the  down  ot  Poland,  and  would  ha\i'  ac- 
cepted but  for  the  Queen.  On  the  17th  of  October,  15S6.  he  was 
mortally  wounded  at  the  battle  of  Zutpher.  After  the  battK",  while 
lying  mangled  with  wounds,  upon  the  field,  a  bottle  ol  water  was 
brought  him  to  relieve  his  thirst;  but  observing  a  soldier  mar  him 
in  a  similar  condition,  he  said,  "This  man's  necessity  is  gi  cater 
than  mine,"  and  resigned  the  water  to  the  dying  man.  His  body 
was  taken  to  London  and  buried  in  St.  Paul's  C'athrdral. 

Besides  the  beautiful  poem  of  the  Arcadia,  w  hu  h  places  him  in 
a  high  rank  among  poets,  he  wrote  a  number  of  smaller  pieces,  both 
in  prose  and  verse.     By  the  writers  of  that  age  he  is  described  as 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  229 

the  most  perfect  model  that  could  be  imagined  of  a  great  charac- 
ter. With  the  wisdom  of  a  statesman,  the  valor  of  a  soldier  and 
the  elegant  accomplishments  of  a  gentleman  and  scholar,  he  com- 
bined high  principles  of  religion,  and  great  purity  of  life.  No  per- 
son was  too  low  to  become  an  object  of  his  humanity. 

Battle  is  about  seven  miles  from  Hastings,  and  is  situated  near 
the  spot  where  William  the  Conquerer  fought  his  great  battle  with 
Harold,  on  the  4th  of  October,  1066.  Harold  was  killed  by  an 
arrow  which  passed  through  the  eye  into  the  brain  and  Norman 
power  was  thus  founded  in  England.  On  the  battle  field  William 
I,  established  the  Abbey  of  6"/.  Martin  de  bcllo  Loco,  in  gratitude 
for  his  victory,  and  as  a  solemn  act  for  the  repose  of  the  souls  of 
those  who  had  fallen.  After  many  ages  of  splendor  the  Abbey  was 
despoiled  by  Henry  VUI  and  much  of  it  was  destroyed.  A  por- 
tion of  the  ruins  remain  and  are  open  to  the  inspection  of  visitors 
and  another  part  of  the  Abbey  has  been  restored  and  is  occasion- 
ally used  by  the  Duke  of  Cleveland.  Everything  connected  with 
this  memorable  spot  is  too  well  known  to  justify  being  communi- 
cated by  us  to  the  reader.  Near  Battle,  we  visited  Normanhurst 
— the  splendid  seat  of  Thomas  Brassey,  M.  P.,  who  has  just  been 
appointed  by  Mr.  Gladstone,  first  Lord  of  the  Admiralty — and  had 
the  pleasure  to  see  his  father.  Thomas  Brassey,  Sr.,  the  celebrated 
Railroad  Contractor  and  millionaire,  who  founded  the  family.  He 
was  then  about  65  years  of  age  and  was  suffering  from  the  palsy, 
but  was  still  in  the  full  possession  of  his  mental  faculties. 

From  Battle  we  proceeded  by  private  conveyance  to  Hastings, 
stopping  in  Warrior  Square,  and  after  a  {q^n  days  sight  seeing  there 
and  at  St:  Leonard's,  returned  by  Brighton  to  London.  Arriving 
in  the  Metropolis  about  two  o'clock  and  near  the  tower,  and  un- 
fatigued  by  the  journey,  we  determined  to  avail  ourselves  of  the 
opportunity  to  make  another  visit  to  this  ancient  building  and 
have  a  look  at  its  contents  before  proceeding  to  our  quarters  in 
Wimpole  street.  The  day  was  cold  and  a  strong  easterly  wind 
searched  the  very  bones  of  the  miserable  crowd  of  sight  seers, 
many  of  them  Americans,  whom  we  found  penned  in  the  open  air 
just  within  the  gate.  When  about  130  persons  were  gathered  to- 
gether, the  gate  closed,  and  while  another  crowd  was  allowed  to 
collect  outside  it,  those  within  were  tolled  off  in  batches  of  thirty 
and  followed  a  beef-eater,  who  marched  through  some  portions  of 
the  Tower,  giving  a  history  of  the  special  features  therein,  but  in 
such  an  undertone  that  few  heard  a  word  he  said.  We  were  taken 
through  the  magnificent  collection  of  Armor  and  Arms  at  a  pace 
which  forbade  the  slightest  examination  of  those  grand  historical 
relics,  telling  their  wondrous  tales  of  ancient  chivalry  and  bloody 
battles.     There  was  not  a  single  piece  of  Armor,  but   had  a   vol- 


230  RAMBLING    REMINISCEN'CES. 

ume  inscribed  upon  it,  not  a  lance  or  sword  without  a  history  of 
its  own.  In  that  collection  of  iron,  England's  past  glories  were 
told  over  and  over  again  and  yet  we  were  compelled  to  walk  past 
them  without  a  chance  of  even  looking  at  some  articles  and  with 
only  a  cursory  glance  at  others,  which  left  no  impression  on  the 
mind  except  of  disgust  with  the  authorities.  This  is  what  the 
tourist  gets  for  his   trouble  in  visiting  London  Tower. 

The  next  morning  was  Sunday  and  our  amiable  and  accomplish- 
ed friend  Mrs.  Priaulx,  who  was  the  follower  of  the  strange  man. 
who  has  been  stykd  the  Plato  of  Christianity,  Swedenborg,  not 
only  invited,  but  insisted  upon  our  taking  a  seat  in  her  carriage 
-and  going  to  King's  Cross  to  hear  a  sermon  from  Dr.  Bayley. — 
Reaching  about  10  o'clock  the  new  Jerusalem  church,  we  found  it, 
architecturally,  comfortable  and  commodious.  At  the  East  end, 
beneath  the  table  ol  mosaic  law  stands  an  Altar  bearing  the  sac- 
ramental elements,  in  front  of  which,  to  the  right  and  left  towers, 
a  brace  of  imposing  pulpits.  In  looking  over  the  books  in  Mrs. 
Priaulx's  pew,  we  found  that  the  new  Jerusalem  musical  arrange- 
ments include  anthems  as  well  as  hymns.'  This  was  an  agreeable 
surprise.  As  the  congregation  began  to  assemble,  we  discovered 
that  the  Swedenborgians  are  by  no  means  a  sombre  sect,  for  the 
lover  and  his  lass  were  ubiquitous  and  there  was  a  pleasing  absence 
of  the  elongated  visage.  After  awhile  the  fine  toned  and  well 
played  organ  piped  up,  and  then  from  the  vestry  emerged  two 
figures  — one  of  them  Dr.  Bayley— the  other  an  assisting  high 
prust  of  Emanuel  Swedenborg.  They  wore  Geneva  gowns  of 
pure  white,  which  exhibited  in  front  a  plentitude  of  waistcoat 
and  watch  chain.  The  two  white  figures  ascended  the  two  lofty 
pulpits.  Now  commenced  the  services,  which  were  conducted 
with  irritating  slowness ;  but  in  mercy  this  tardy  process  is  reliev- 
ed by  some  capital  singing.  The  professional  element,  one  is  glad 
to  think,  has  received  the  sanction  of  Swed-enborg  and  his  disci- 
ples, and  we  imagine  it  forms  quite  as  much  an  attraction  as  the 
two  gentlemen  in  the  snowy  gowns,  or  the  doctrines  of  Emanuel 
himself.  Of  the  service  as  such  little  need  be  said.  The  ritual 
bears  a  strong  family  resemblance  to  that  of  the  Morovians.  The 
sermon  was  dull  and  the  subsequent  Eucharist  was  all  the  most 
zealous  Protestant  could  desire.  The  vagaries  and  visions  of  the 
founder  of  this  phase  of  religion  seemed  to  be  judiciously  kept  in 
the  background,  and  there  was,  indeed,  little  to  otfend  the  suscep- 
tibiluies  ol  the  most  rigorously  orthodox.  One  of  the  pastors  in- 
vited the  working  men  to  a  meeting  in  the  week  in  order  that  a 
passage  in  St.  Mathew  might  be  explained  by  a  layman  in  the 
light  of  the  prophet  Swedenborg,  but  as  no  workmen  were  visible 
to  the  naked  eye  in  the  church,  we  were  not  seriously  alarmed  for 


z^- 


■^ 


RAMBLING     REMINISCElsicH?.^?  I  V  V  t?   ^  23  I 


the  spiritual  safety  of  the  proletariat.     AltogoMfe^tii^sgl*^ice   _ 
exceedingly  pleasant,  especially  for  those  who  are^QOT*Gff^J{J jjbi 
ic  and  some  parade.     More  amused  than  edified  b^ 
seen,  we  returned  to  Cavendish  Square  and  enjoyed  a  good  dinner 
and  long  chit  chat  with  our  friends. 

The  following  morning  we  re-entered  upon  the  prosaic  duties  of 
>ur  town  life  at  that  period. 


CHAPTER  XXIIL 


THE  ANGLO-NORMAN  ISLE  OF  GUERNSEY. 

England  affords  so  many  objects  of  interest  worthy  of  descrip- 
tion that  a  work  of  the  nature  of  this  might  easily  be  made  very 
voluminous.  This  we  do  not  desire,  nor  probably  the  reader. 
We  shall,  therefore,  close  these  reminiscences  with  a  concluding 
chapter,  in  order  to  give  some  very  rambling  reminiscences  of 
ithe  Island  of  Guernsey,  where  annually,  for  years,  we  spent  much 
iime. 

This  preity  little  island  lies  in  a  favored  archipelago  in  the  bay 
of  Lamanche,  or  the  bay  of  Mount  St,  Michel,  as  the  English  call 
it,  about  85  miles  from  and  S.  E.  of  Weymouth,  on  the  north 
'West  coast  of  France,  at  the  extremity  of  Cherbourg  point.  It  is 
>a  favorite  resort  of  half  pay  officers  and  others  of  limited  income, 
for  the  necessaries  of  life  are  cheap  and  the  luxuries  untaxed.  It 
is  also  much  frequented  by  delicate  persons  who  require  a  mild 
winter  climate.  The  gulf  stream  after  leaving  America  crosses  the 
ocean  and  -expends  itself  on  the  shores  of  Western  Europe,  to 
which  cause  may  be  attributed  the  genial  climate  of  the  southern 
counties  of  England  and  the  Channel  Islands,  The  vast  body  of 
tepid  water  of  the  gull  stream  causes  also  rapid  evaporation  and  the 
fogs  which  hang  over  this  part  of  the  world  and  which  envelope 
•Guernsey  with  their  warm  breath,  create  upon  the  rocks  in  the 
midst  of  the  sea  a  flora,  which  the  most  beautiful  islands  of  the 
Adriatic  and  Mediterranean   might  well  envy.      The    Aloes  and 


232  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

the  Camelia  springy  up  in  the  open  air  and  the  Passion  flower  en- 
twines itself  around  the  largest  trees. 

In  London  we  formed  the  acquaintance  of  several  Guernsey- 
men  and  on  reaching  St.  Peter-port  were  most  cordially  wel- 
comed, received,  indeed,  with  that  warmth  and  true  politeness 
which  come  from  the  heart.  By  Col.  James  Priaulx,  of  Mont- 
ville,  one  of  Her  Majesty's  aid- de  camps,  we  were  introduced  to 
the  Lieutenant  Governor,  General  C.  Rochforth  Scott,  and  Sir 
Stafford  Carey,  the  Bailiff,  or  Chief  Justice  of  the  Court  of  Com- 
mon Pleas.  With  both  we  were  much  pleased,  the  General 
uniting  to  the  qualities  of  the  old  soldier  the  accomplishments  of 
the  man  of  letters,*  and  the  Bailiff,  who  is  a  graduate  of  Oxford 
and  former  professor  of  law  in  the  University  of  London,  adding 
to  a  profound  knowledge  of  his  profession,  elegant  scholarship 
and  extensive  attainments  in  several  branches  of  learning.  Sir 
Stafford  was  a  tall,  strongly  built,  erect,  handsome  man  of  about 
65 — with  dignified,  but  affable  manners  and  bearing — moreover, 
a  man  enjoying  that  valuable  gift,  a  presence  which  is  said  to  have 
carried  more  men  to  fortune  than  intellect.  Subsequently  a  warm 
friendship  grew  up  between  Sir  Stafford  and  the  writer,  and  he 
takes  a  sorrowful  pleasure  in  saying  of  him  here,  years  after  his 
death,  that  a  more  noble,  honorable,  upright  man  and  judge  never 
lived. 

Such  was  the  beauty  of  the  island  as  we  looked  upon  it  from 
the  deck  of  the  Weymouth  steamer  which  took  us  to  St.  Peter- 
port  that  we  lost  no  time  on  our  arrival  in  viewing  Castle  Cornet, 
the  fort,  the  docks,  the  light  houses,  the  columns  and  statues — all 
the  objects  of  interest  in  and  about  St.  Peter  Port  and  then  in  visit- 
ing the  bays,  inlets  and  commons,  going  entirely  round  the  island 
and  through  the  interior  to  the  Parish  churches  situated  near  the 
centre  of  each  parish,  and  surrounded  by  a  small  cluster  of  houses, 
stopping  to  talk  to  the  peasants,  entering  their  houses  and  exam- 
ining their  farm  buildings,  their  farms,  their  stock,  etc.,  and  re- 
turned to  the  town  so  much  delighted  that  we  pronounced  the 
island  a  garden,  a  veritable  earthly  paradise,  where  a  few  weeks 
before,  the  fields  had  been  laden  with  rich  harvests  and  the  or- 
chards covered  with  fruit. 

Let  us  now  plunge,  without  regard  to  order,  after  the  advice  of 
Horace,  into  the  midst  of  what  we  have  to  say. 

Within  a  few  days  after  our  arrival  we  dined  at  Haviland  Hall, 
the  Governor's  residence,  and  at  Candie,  that  of  Sir  Stafford 
Carey,  meeting  at  both  places   representatives  from  the  leading 

*Gen'l  Scott  is  author  of  a  learned  work  entitled  ''Rambles  in  Egypt  and 
Candia."  He  was  an  ensign  in  the  British  army  in  1812  and  present  at  the 
battle  of  New  Orleans  in  1815. 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENSES.  233 

families  of  the  island.  This  was  during  the  winter,  and  the  winter 
is  the  gay  season  in  Guernsey,  and  if  the  entertainments  are  on  a 
smaller  scale  than  those  of  London,  Paris  and  New  York,  they 
are  none  the  less  agreeable. 

The  resources  of  the  island  in  the  way  of  society  are  by  no 
means  inconsiderable.  The  native  society  is  quite  large  and  is 
reinforced  by  the  Garrison  officers  and  their  families,  and  there 
are  always  in  the  island  detachments  of  Royal  Engineers,  artillery 
and  infantry.  The  stranger  population,  composed  of  those  to 
whom  we  have  referred,  is  never  less  than  3,000,  many  being  En- 
glish families,  who  have  adopted  it  as  a  permanent  residence,  and 
there  are  always  many  yatchrnen  and  other  pleasure  seekers  who 
come  here  at  every  season,  but  more  particularly  in  summer.  As 
all  are  people  of  leisure,  there  is  no  business  but  pleasure,  and 
Guernsey  is  a  decidedly  gay  and  festive  spot,  a  little,  though  a 
very  little,  Paris.  The  usual  vices  and  follies  of  the  great  world 
prevail,  but  probably  in  a  less  degree  than  in  larger  communities. 
However  this  may  be,  we  shall  not  declaim  against  them  in  bitter 
or  indeed,  in  any  terms,  as  the  Guernsey  devotees  of  fashion  are 
no  worse,  if  no  better,  than  others — than  modern  society  in  general 
— against  which  it  is  not  our  purpose  to  tilt  the  lance.  As  to 
the  customs  ol  good  society,  it  is  sufficient  to  say  that  they  are 
similar  to  those  which  prevail  in  London  and  New  York  rather 
than  in  Paris,  only  slightly  modified  by  ancient  isl  and  customs. 
The  people  are,  in  a  general  way,  very  much  like  other  people — 
as  fond  of  dancing  as  the  French,  of  music  as  the  Italians,  and  of 
eating  as  the  English.  This  brings  us  to  remark  that  as  in  En- 
gland and  Guernsey,  the  dinner  is  the  main  institution  of  society, 
and  as  it  differs  a  little  in  the  way  it  is  prepared  and  served  from 
our  American  dinner,  it  will  not  tire  our  readers  if  we  say  a  word 
about  it.  In  the  first  place,  it  may  be  truly  said  of  them  that  they 
are  exceedingly  good  and  enjoyable  and  always  select  as  to  com- 
pany. And  the  company  invited  must  not  arrive  too  soon  or  too 
late,  but  strictly  at  the  hour  invited.  They  are  never  crowded, 
and  are  spiced  with  the  conversation  of  educated  people — experi- 
enced and  traveled  ladies  and  gentlemen,  and  men  of  talent  for 
talking,  if  such  can  be  secured,  which  makes  them  highly  grati- 
fying to  the  mind  and  senses.  It  is  customary  to  dine  at  five 
o'clock,  but  dinner  parties  rarely  occur  before  half  past  six  and 
sonietimes  as  late  as  half  past  eight  o'clock.  The  place  of  distinc- 
tion at  the  table  is  the  seat  at  the  greatest  distance  from  the  door 
at  which  the  food  is  brought  in,  and  to  the  right  of  the  lady  of 
the  house.  This  post  is  usually  assigned  to  the  person  of  highest 
rank,  or  stranger  guest,  but  great  eminence  in  talents  sets  aside 
distinctions      These  rise  superior  to  rules.     All  the  rest  take  their 


234  RAMBLING    REMINISCENSES. 

places  promiscuously,  unless,  as  is  often  the  case,  the  names  of 
the  guests  on  cards  are  placed  at  the  seat  they  are  intended  to 
occupy.  A  servant  does  the  carving  lor  the  company.  The  din- 
ner begins  with  a  light  soup  ;  this  is  followed  by  fish,  potatoes  and 
salad  ;  then  follow  the  entrees,  then  the  roast,  then  the  game,  then 
the  pastries  and  puddings,  then  cheese,  and  last  the  fruits  and 
nuts.  With  the  lish,  sauterne  and  sherry  are  served,  then  cham- 
pagne, hock  and  claret,  and  the  dinner  ends  with  port,  claret  and 
sherry,  liqueurs  and  coffee.  No  healths  are  drunk  by  anybody 
present.  Occasionalfy,  however,  a  foreigner's  health  is  proposed, 
when  he  is  expected  to  make  a  few  remarks.  After  the  ices  and 
dessert  have  gone  round,  the  ladies  retire,  when  everything  is  re- 
moved but  the  wine  and  nuts,  over  which  the  gentlemen  converse 
until  nine  or  ten  o'clock,  when  the  gentlemen  join  the  ladies  in  the 
drawing  rooms  where  such  guests  as  have  been  invited  to  an  "ev- 
ening" are  assembled,  and  where  whist,  music  and  dancing  con- 
clude the  entertainment.  There  is  a  homely  old  proverb  applica- 
ble to  these  Guernsey  dinners — "one  n:ay  go  further  and  fare 
worse." 

Let  us  indulge  in  a  few  more  details.  To  the  after  dinner  recep- 
tions, or  "evenings,"  the  lady  of  the  house  invites  the  company, 
and  these  parties  are  usually  large  and  the  company  somewhat 
promiscuous,  often  including,  il  not  all,  much  the  greater  part  of 
the  hostess'  acquaintances^consequently  like  the  garrison  and 
other  balls,  they  are  crowded  and  there  is  no  small  amount 
of  cramming,  squeezing  and  struggling,  especially  around  the  sup- 
per table.  These  suppers  are,  by  the  way,  always  good,  consist- 
ing of  fowls,  game,  &c.,  all  kinds  of  made  dishes,  including  one 
peculiar  to  the  island,  and  called  pickled  ormers.*  It  is  a  shell 
fish,  something  similar  to  the  oyster,  only  when  cooked  in  Guern- 
sey, by  an  ancient  chef  de  cuisine,  much  better.  Everything  is 
washed  down  with  sherry,  claret  and  champagne.  Dancing  is 
always  going  on  somewhere,  but  little  else  is  visible  to  the  on-looker 
than  a  writhing  mass  of  humanity.  Even  in  winter,  in  this  mild 
climate,  the  heat  on  these  occasions  is  oppressive,  notwithstanding 
the  pains  taken  to  secure  good  ventilation,  and  the  rapid  pai^sing 
round  of  ices.  Conspicuous  at  these  balls,  are,  of  course,  the  subal- 
terns in  the  army  and  under  graduates  fresh  from  the  universi- 
ties, the  latter  'i)ainfully  neat.'  as  Hood  says,  and  known  among 
the  Lilies  of  Guernsey,  notwithstanding  their  irresistible  garments, 
as  "featherless  bipeds."  These  gallants,  who  are  always  at  a  pre- 
mium at  dances,  now  and  again  feather  their  nests  by  marrying 
*  the  island  belles,  who  are  generally    heiresses  and   always  pretty. 

*  rhe  shells  of  the  ormer  are  converted  into  work-boxes  and  preUy  toys  of  one 
kind  or  another. 


I 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  235 

The  Guernsey  women,  we  may  as  well  say  here,  are  tall,  well  pro- 
portioned, and  of  blonde  complexion  in  the  high  and  brunette  in 
the  low  parishes ;  their  carriage  is  noble  and  their  tone  of  voice 
sweet  and  tender.  Owing  to  the  extreme  purity  of  the  atmosphere 
and  their  open  air  exercises,  they  do  not  require  artificial  aid  to 
heighten  their  beauty,  the  bloom  of  the  rose  and  lily  vie  in  their 
complexions.  Their  dress  is  Parisien  and,  of  course,  lacks  nothing 
In  the  way  of  taste  and  elegance. 

At  this  point,  where  we  have  spoken  of  the  dinner  customs  and 
the  marrying  young  man,  it  may  not  be  out  of  place  to  say  some- 
thing in  regard  to  that  fashionable  event,  the  marriage  breakfast 
—  an  event  far  too  rare  in  the  island  where  there  arfe  ,  several 
thousand  more  females  than  males — thousands,  indeed,  of  splendid 
girls,  marnagable,  but  unmarried.  The  disproportion  is  so  great 
that  a  stranger  might  well  imagine  that  the  men  had  fallen  upon 
the  advice  of  Mr.  Weller  to  his  son  Samivel ;  "I'm  a  goin'  to 
leave  you,  Samivel,  my  boy,  and  there's  no  telling  ven  I  shall  see 
you  again.  Your  motlier- in-law  may  have  been  too  much  for  me, 
or  a  thousand  things  may  have  happened  by  the  time  you  next 
hears  any  news  o'  the  celebrated  Mr.  Veller  o'  the  Bell  Savage. 
The  family  name  depends  wery  much  upon  you,  Samivel,  and  I 
hope  you'll  do  wot's  right  by  it.  Upon  all  little  pints  o'  breedin', 
I  know  I  may  trust  you  as  veil  as  it  it  was  my  own  self  So  I've 
only  this  here  one  little  bit  of  adwice  to  give  you.  If  ever  you 
gets  to  up'ards  o'  fifty,  and  feels  disposed  to  go  a  marryin'  any- 
body— no  niatter  who— jist  you  shut  yourself  upin  your  own  room, 
if  you've  got  one,  and  pison  yourself  offhand.  Hangin's  wulgar,so 
don't  you  have  nothin'  to  say  to  that.  Pison  yourself,  Samivel, 
my  boy,  pison  yourself,  and  you'll  be  glad  on  it  arterwards."  The 
real  cause  of  this  anomalous  state  of  aftairs  is  simply  the  fact  that 
most  of  the  Guernsev  youths  are  abroad  seeking  their  fortunes — 
some  in  the  British  army,  some  tossed  about  on  the  seas  in  men  of 
war,  or  commercial  vessels,  some  are  growing  coffee  in  Ceylon,  or 
wool  in  Africa  or  Australia  and  others  are  cow  boys  in  Colorado. 
Wherever  there  is  work  to  be  done  or  money  or  glory  to  be  ac- 
quired, these  Guernsey  boys  are  to  the  front.  Yes  these  are  the 
causes  of  the  disproportion  and  not  the  want  of  beauty  or  accom- 
plishments with  the  ladies. 

The  customs  which  prevail  in  regard  to  marriage  are  not 
very  dissimilar  to  those  of  the  English.  People  marry  after 
the  publication  of  three  banns,  and  a  dispensation  of  banns  is  easily 
obtained  by  those  who  do  not  wish  to  be  thus  inarried,  and  those 
who  aspire  to  the  habits  of  good  society  never  do,  as  the  marriage 
by  banns  is  not  considered  comme  ilfaut.  Magnificent  breakfasts 
among  the  wealthy,  and  substantial  suppers  among  the  peasantry 


236  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 

are  customary  on  such  occasions,  irrespective  of  expense.  These 
breakfasts  are  worthy  of  a  slight  notice.  It  is  usually  arranq^ed  on 
one  or  more  tables,  decorated  with  silver,  jjlass  and  flowers — the 
wedding  cake  is  richly  ornamented  with  flowers  in  sugar  and  a 
knot  of  orang^e  blossoms  at  the  top.  At  either  end  of  the  table 
are  tea  and  coffee.  Generally  the  viands  are  cold,  consisting  of 
poultry,  game,  salads,  hams,  tongues,  jellies,  cake  and  indeed 
sweets  of  every  description,  ices,  fruits,  wines,  etc.  The  wedding 
cake  is  cut  by  the  nearest  gentleman  and  handed  round.  The 
father — or  in  case  the  father  be  absent,  or  dead,  the  nearest  friend 
now  proposes  the  health  of  the  bride  and  bride  groom.  The  lat- 
ter is  exf5ected  to  answer,  which  we  have  often  heard  him  do  in  a 
most  amusing  and  ridiculous  manner,  and  to  propose  the  bride- 
grooms-man. The  latter  returns  thanks,  and  pledges  the  brides- 
maids, who  answer  through  the  bride  groom.  The  health  of  the 
clergyman,  if  he  is  present,  is  also  proposed.  The  health  of  our 
"American  cousins,"  brought  us  to  our  legs  oftener  than  we  could 
fitlyVespond  in  words  that  breathe  and  thoughts  that  burn  to  the 
hospitality  of  these  charming  people.  A  coach  and  four  draws  up, 
after  a  sufficient  time  has  passed  to  allow  ample  justice  to  be  done 
the  breakfast,  the  company  then  take  leave  of  the  bride  in  the  draw- 
ing room,  and  she  is  led  to  the  coach  as  rice  and  slippers  are 
thrown  after  the  drag,  in  which  she  drives  off.  The  rice  throwing 
had  its  origin  in  the  Kingdom  of  Macassar,  where  rice  is  thrown  out 
of  the  back  windows  of  the  house  all  day  during  a  wedding.  It  is 
supposed  that  since  rice  is  an  emblem  of  fruitfulness,  it  is  thrown 
in  the  hope  that  it  will  secure  an  abundant  crop  of  olive  branches 

On  these  occasions  presents  are  given  by  the  bride-groom  to  the 
bride  and  bridesmaids,  and  by  the  bridesmaids  and  friends  to  the 
bride.  They  consist  generally  of  jewelry  and  are  often  costly.  The 
servants,  too,  expect  presents  and  are  rarely  disappointed,  from 
which  it  may  be  rightly  inferred  that  a  fashionable  wedding  in 
Guernsey  is  by  no  means  an  insignificant  affair. 

Though  from  the  diminutive  character  of  the  island,  there  are 
few  opportunities  of  acquiring  wealth,  there  are  sever  d  fanulies  ol 
fortune,  not  large,  but  easy  and  independent,  whose  money  has 
been  made  by  trade  in  South  America,  Spain,  Australia,  Ceylon 
and  other  countries.  This  is  notably  the  case  with  the  Careys, 
the  Allaires,  the  MacGregors,  the  Tuppers  and  the  Dobrees,  all 
of  whom  have  had  members  distinguished  for  their  intelligence, 
spirit  and  enterprise.  Having  made  money  by  honorable  mercan- 
tile transactions,  they  know  how  to  keep  it,  and  they  have  enjoyed 
it  so  long  that  the  taint  of  trade  has  gradually  disappeared.  Their 
children  are  brought  up  to  the  most  exeinplary  habits  of  economy 
and  saving. 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  •  237 

It  is  usual  to  give  very  young  children  a  few  small  coins  weekly, 
which  they  take  with  regularity  on  Saturdays  and  deposit  in  the 
savings  banks.  This  is  done  to  teach  them  habits  of  accumulation. 
They  are  told  that  the  bee  gathers  honey  for  the  winter,  the  squir- 
rel nuts  against  a  time  of  want,  and  the  ant  is  pointed  out  as  a 
beautiful  example  of  industrious  forethought.  They  are  early 
impressed  with  the  idea-that  man  forms  no  exception  to  the  rule, 
and  that  in  youth  he  must  provide  for  the  necessities  of  old  age. 
The  good  results  of  such  teachings  are  seen  in  the  staid  habits 
and  customs  of  the  people,  and  in  their  surroundings — in  their 
neat,  tidy  dwellings,  well  kept  grounds  and  in  their  dress  and  gen- 
eral thrifty  appearance.  It  must  not  be  inferred  from  this  that  the 
virtue  of  economy  is  carried  to  an  extreme — far  from  it.  These 
good  people  only  practice  that  kind  of  thrift  which  leads  to  thriv- 
ing. Persons  of  limited  income  do  not  vie  with  those  of  larger 
fortune,  nor  do  they  lose  caste  by  it.  Often  have  we  been  invited 
to  tea  by  refined  and  cultivated  persons  who  accompanied  their 
civility  with  the  remark  that  they  were  unable  to  give  dinners— 
hence  their  invitations  to  equally  agreeable  and  less  expensive 
entertainments.  It  gave  us  genuine  pleasure  to  accept  such  invita- 
tions and  we  always  enjoyed  much  these  quiet  reunions.  While 
an  enlightened  economy  prevails  with  all  there  is  no  parsimony  or 
niggardness.  No  people  display  a  more  Christian  or  charitable 
spirit  in  all  matters  affecting  the  poor.  So  large  are  the  volun- 
tary contributions  to  the  poor,  especially  during  the  Winter,  that 
little  is  left  to  be  done  by  the  parochial  authorities.  And  never  was 
a  sailor  lost  at  sea,  a  workman  blown  to  atoms  in  the  quarries,  or 
a  family  overtaken  by  any  unusual  misfortune  such  as  the  loss  of 
the  head,  that  a  handsome  subscription  did  not  follow — often  plac- 
ing the  widow  and  children  beyond  want.  This  benevolent  spirit, 
which  forms  so  beautiful  a  feature  in  the  Guernsey  character,  is 
further  shown  in  large  contributions  in  aid  of  sober,  industrious 
and  worthy  families  who  wish  to  emigrate  to  America  or  the  Brit- 
ish Colonies,  and  in  contributions  to  alleviate  the  misfortunes  and 
sufferings  of  unfortunates  in  other  countries — the  victims  of  fires, 
earthquakes,  floods,  disease  and  pestilence. 

The  people  are  physically  muscular  and  active,  not  so  large  in 
person  as  the  English  or  so  small  as  the  French,  but  a  fair  mean 
between  the  two.  In  the  high  parishes  the  men  and  women  are 
larger  than  in  the  low  parishes,  which  is  said  to  be  due  to  their 
Breton  origin  in  the  vale,  and  to  the  deplorable  extent  to  which 
marrying  in-and-in  is  carried — the  rule  down  there  being  to  marry 
a  cousin  if  possible.  The  population  of  the  high  parishes  claim  a 
Norman  origin.  In  every  part  of  the  bailiwick  the  people  are  of 
a  vivacious  and  lively  temperament  and  a  stranger  walking  through 

(66) 


2^8  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 

the  market  place,  the  arcade  or  high  street  of  an  evening,  sees  gay 
countenances,  hears  obstreperous  laughing  and  a  universal  inclina- 
tion to  jollity,  and  this  among  a  people  far  removed  from  what  is 
styled  an  ignorant  and  restless  populace. 

Regret  has  been  expressed,  even  by  Guernseymen,  that  the 
people  do  not  take  more  pleasure  in  the  manly  sports  of  the  En- 
glish, instead  of  passing  iheir  leisure  time  at  bazaars,  or  following 
religious  and  other  processions.  The  better  sort  of  people  among 
the  Islanders  are  not,  it  is  true,  fond  of  procuring  themselves 
pleasure  by  means  of  violent  exercise.  Bnt  it  is  otherwise  with 
many  and  especially  with  the  masses,  who  are  fond  of  cricket,  foot 
ball,  tennis,  quoits  and  boating,  and  these  games  would  be  practised 
more  generally,  if  their  occupations  admitted  of  it.  Games,  of 
some  sort,  are  common  in  Summer  and  every  afternoon  one  or 
the  other  of  those  mentioned  is  played  in  Cambridge  Park,  or 
some  other  suitable  ground.  And  it  is  common  for  the  College, 
or  Garrison  Clubs,  or  the  Town  clubs,  to  send  challenges  to  those 
of  Weymouth,  Southampton,  or  Jersey,  and  invite  them  to  try 
their  skill,  contesting  for  some  prize.  On  such  occasions  large 
crowds  of  people  resort  to  see  them  play  ;  and  it  sometimes  hap- 
pens that  gentlemen  not  members  of  the  clubs,  more  particularly 
the  collegians  and  garrison  officers,  are  among  the  number  of  the 
players.  The  Summer  festival  of  Elizabeth  College,  or  what  are 
styled  "the  College  Sports,"  occur  on  a  high  ground  overlooking 
the  sea  and  are  fashionably  attended.  The  young  men  and  boys 
dressed  in  light  tights,  contend  in  hurdle  races,  flat  races,  sack 
races,  hammer  throwing,  leaping,  and  in  all  manner  of  athletic  ex- 
ercises for  prizes,  generally  awarded  by  some  popular  lady. 

At  the  annual  races  many  other  sports  are  common  with  the 
peasantry,  such  as  hanging  hams,  fowls  and  other  eatables  at  the 
top  of  a  perfectly  smooth  pole.  The  nice  things  at  the  top  of  the 
pole  reward  the  successful  climber.  The  most  vigorous  young 
men  make  a  trial  of  this  fete,  but  the  greater  part  are  unsuccess 
(ul — sliding  down  with  great  velocity,  to  the  no  small  merriment  of 
the  spectators,  men  and  women.  He  who  is  so  robust  and  skillful 
as  to  reach  the  top  and  throw  down  the  eatables,  is  the  hero  of  the 
hour. 

When  the  annual  Spring  and  Autumn  races  occur,  on  L'ancresse 
common  in  Guernsey  or  Gorey  common  in  Jersey,  these  and 
many  other  like  sports  and  rustic  games  prevail.  All  classes  take 
a  deep  interest  in  regattas,  and  when  they  occur  the  islanders  turn 
out  en  Diiyssr  and  many  visitors  come  from  the  neighboring  islands 
and  even  from  England  and  France.  These  are  only  some  of  the 
games  and  exercises  which  call  forth  the  powers  of  the  mind  as 
well  as  those  of  the  body — require  strength  and  dexterity, and  the 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  239 

mere  mention  of  these  will  serve  to  correct  the  erroneous    impres- 
sions on  this  subject  and  tend  to  convey  a  just  idea  of  the  people. 

LITERATURE,    ETC. 

Guernsey  has  produced  several  meritorious  poets  and  there  is  a 
brisk  vein  of  poetry  running  through  the  population.  The  most 
famous  poet  is  Georges  Metevier,  who  made  valuable  contributions 
to  other  departments  of  literature.  He  prepared  and  published 
some  years  since  a  ijreat  work  with  a  view  to  preserving  the  ancient 
language  of  the  country,  styled  '" Dictionnaire  Ftanco-Normand; 
au  Recueil  des  niiis par Hc2x Hers  au  Dialccic  de  Guernsey T 

The  book  is  grand  in  the  design  and  coinplete  in  its  execution  and 
reflects  infinite  honor  upon  the  authr^r  and  the  island.  Mr  Mete- 
vier, who  was  over  80  years  of  age  when  the  work  was  published, 
had  been  sixty  years  employed  upon  it  and  had  the  assistance  of 
Sir  Stafford  Carey,  Sir  Edgar  MacCulloch,  F.  B.  Tupper,  Rev.  R. 
J.  Ozanne  and  Dr.  Hoskins.  It  has  added  immensely  to  the  stock 
of  knowledge  already  possessed  by  the  scholars,  and  teaches  the 
student,  by  a  striking  example,  of  the  vast  and  almost  incredible 
acquisitions  the  human  mmd  can  make,  when  long  and  incessantly 
employed  in  the  pursuit  of  knowledge. 

It  is  said  that  the  work  was  undertaken  at  the  suggestion  of  Lu- 
cian  Bonaparte.  Prince  of  Canino,  who  was  himself  an  accomplish- 
ed philologist,  and  despite  some  inaccuracies,  is  still  the  best  au- 
thority on  the  subject  which  it  treats.  Mr.  Metevier  lived  in  his 
books,  knew  little  and  cared  less  about  any  of  the  ordinary  affairs 
which  exercise  the  minds  of  men,  and  though  of  the  most  benev- 
olent and  amicable  disposition,  had  little  more  sympathy  with  any 
of  the  questions  of  the  day  than  if  he  had  been  living  in  another 
world.  He  was  the  younger  brother  of  Wm.  P.  Metevier,  a  Jurat 
of  the  Royal  Court  and  one  of  the  most  excellent  and  useful  men 
in  the  island.  This  erudite  and  good  man,  as  also  his  venerable 
brother,  has  descended  to  the  tomb.  Hallowed  be  their  memo- 
ries. Mr.  Metevier  was  a  profound  etymologist,  scholar  and  poet.* 
Several  other  (niernseymen  have  succeeded  in  different  de- 
partments of  learning,  notably  Ferdinand  Brock  Tupper,  author 
of  the  most  valuable  history  extant  of  the  island,  who  may  be  de- 
scribed as  traveller,  archselogist,  natural  philosopher  and  historian, 
combined  in  one.  Frederick  Lukis  and  Dr.  MacCulloch,  distin- 
guished geologists;  Rev   J.  A.  Jeremie,  D.  I).,    regius   professor  of 

*Mr.  Metevier's  poetry  is  smooth  and  harmonious — much  more  so  in  his  na- 
tive French-Normand  language  than  in  English — is  characterized  by  fine  taste, 
sound  judgment,  and  lively  imagination.  It  is  reason  ornamented  by  imagi- 
nation and  rythm.  The  reader  will  find,  in  appendix  A,  some  lines  from  his 
pen,  which  appeared  in  the  local  Ciuernsey  papers  shortly  after  the  author's  re- 
turn to  America  — Ed. 


240  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 

Greek  at  Cambridge;  Peter  Paul  Dobree.  Hellenist  and  classical 
writer;  Osmond  de  B.  Priaulx,  author  of  "Questiones  Mosaicae," 
or  the  book  of  Genesis  compared  with  the  remains  of  ancient  re- 
ligion," and  other  valuable  educational  works;  Dr.  Hoskins,  author 
of  "Charles  II.,  in  the  Channel  Islands,"  and  other  works;  Amias 
C.  Andros,  author  of  an  interesting  work  of  travels  in  Spain,  etc.; 
Mrs.     Carey     Brock,    author  of  several  popular  religious  works. 

The  island  has  produced  no  eminent  artist,  painter,  architect,  or 
sculptor,  but  there  is  at  present  a  clever  portrait  painter,  a  native 
of  the  island, — a  Mr.  Paul  Naftel,  winning  fame  in  London.  If  in 
these  departments  they  have  done  little,  they  have  furnished  many 
fine  soldiers  and  sailors  to  the  British  army  and  navy,  and  the  isl- 
and militia  is  well  drilled  and  full  of  martial  spirit. 

The  higher  class  is  known  as  Sixtys,  who  have  for  ages  held  the 
first  position  and  enjoyed  the  best  of  everything  in  the  island. 
They  are  called  by  the  peasantry  "the  people  of  the  first  fashion," 
and  are,  in  fact,  the  old  manor  families.  Their  society  comprises 
nearly  all  that  is  brilliant  in  art  and  intellect  in  the  island  ;  all  who 
are  distinguished  by  their  wealth,  virtues,  or  knowledge,  and  has 
done  so  from  a  remote  period.  Men  of  fortune  are  admitted  to 
it  because  they  support  the  burdens  of  the  state ;  men  of  virtue  and 
enlightenment,  because  they  chiefly  contribute  to  its  preservation 
and  glory,  and  men  of  birth  from  a  presumption  that  it  transmits 
from  father  to  son  more  noble  sentiments,  and  a  more  ardent  pa- 
triotism than  can  be  found  in  vulgar  minds.  Particular  regard  is 
therefore  paid  to  the  old  families,  and  especially  those  whose  found- 
ers have  displayed  examples  of  distinguished  virtue.  Some  of 
the  Sixtys  trace  back  their  origin  more  than  a  thousand  years,  and 
are  accused  of  inventing  genealogies  to  establish  their  pi  etensions. 
They  enjoy  no  peculiar  privileges  or  precedency,  but  their  educa- 
tion gives  them  a  claim  to  the  first  places  and  public  opinion  fa- 
cilitates their  attaining  them. 

The  leading  Seigneurs  and  landed  proprietors  are  the  Priaulx's, 
Seigneurs  of  Comte,  the  Andros',  Seigneurs  of  Anneville,  the 
Sausmarez.  Seigneurs  of  Jerbourg,  the  de  Jerseys,  proprietors 
of  Oberlands,  the  Collings',  Seigneurs  of  Serk,  the  Lefevres, 
Seigneurs  of  Blanchmond,  the  LeMarchants,  proprietors  of  Haye 
de  Puit,  and  the  Mansells,  proprietors  of  the  Vaubelets.  The  pres- 
ent representatives  of  these  families  are  as  different  as  possible,  in 
all  but  spirit,  from  their  warlike  ancestors,  who  clad  in  steel  armor 
and  mounted  on  Percheron  chargers  often  made  whole  districts 
tremble.  This  was  their  principal  employment,  during  the  middle 
ages,  when  these  Seigneurs  exercised  a  complete  mastery  over  their 
villeins,  making  them  perform  all  kinds  of  menial  offices  in  lime 
of  peace  and  follow  their  persons  in  time  of  war.  In  those  days  there 


RAMBLING    REMINISCENSES.  241 

were  but  Sixteen  Seigneurs  in  Guernsey— the  rest  of  the  popula- 
tion was  in  a  state  of  vassalage.  As  this  was  the  character,  posi- 
tion and  former  state  and  condition  of  the  Sixtys,  it  is  hardly  sur- 
prising that  they  still  feel  a  little  pride  of  position.  The  Sixtys 
affect  French  manners,  as  well  as  the  French  language*  and  re- 
semble their  architypes  in  affability,  easy  elegance  and  alertness. 
They  are  not  a  little  proud  of  their  immediate  descent  from  the 
Norman  Conquerers  of  England  and  boast,  as  indeed  does  the 
entire  population,  that  they  have  never  been  over-run,  subjugated 
or  conquered  by  any  race,  or  nation  whatever.  Although  very 
ex-clusive,  within  recent  years  many  have  crept  into  their  social 
circle,  who  ought  not  to  be  there — these  for  the  most  part  have 
been  disreputable  or  what  are  styled  ''shady"  English. 

The  second  rank  is  known  as  Fortys  and  are  said,  with  what 
truth  we  know  not,  to  be  descendants  of  the  fanes  tenants  of  the 
middle  ages,  or  those  serfs  who  by  superior  parts,  acquired  lands 
of  the  Seigneurs  exempt  from  any  service,  burden,  tax  or  duty  to 
the  Lord  of  the  Manor,  or  lands  in  which  Seignorial  rights  were, 
for  a  valuable  consideration,  surrendered.  The  Fortys  are  sturdy 
men  of  affairs,  bankers,  merchants,  manufacturers,  care  little  for 
learning  or  the  arts,  and  nothing  whatever  for  the  gayeties  and 
frivolities  of  the  fashionable  world.  They  are  full  of  practical 
ideas,  plodding  industry  and  progressive  energ3^  Whatever  trade 
and  commerce  Guernsey  can  boast  of,  is  in  their  hands;  if  they 
do  not  originate  they  carry  out  all  public  improvements,  rear 
blooded  stock,  apply  science  to  agriculture — they  are  the  men  of 
to-day — the  Sixtys  of  yesterday.  The  latter  will  not  admit  them 
to  social  intercourse,  however  agreeable  they  maybe  in  manners, 
in  social  talents  and  elevated  in  character.  This  is  to  be  regretted 
since  many  of  the  Fortys  would  be  ornaments  to  the  island  so- 
ciety Such  men  as  John  D.  Utermarch  who  though  descended 
of  humble  Dutch  origin,  and  enjoying  few  advantages  of  early 
education,  was  a  man  of  such  perseverance,  strength  of  will  and 
extraordinary  audacity  that  he  made  the  most  of  every  oppor- 
tunity that  came  in  his  way.  and  rose  to  a  prominent  position  at 
the  bar,  ranking  with  such  eminent  jurists  as  Charles  de  Jersey 
and  Henry  Tupper — the  latter  the  most  learned  lawyer,  compre- 
hensive statesman  and  unselfish  patriot  of  his  day,  and  Hilary  O. 
Carr6  and  James  Gallienne,  both  of  plebian  extract,  but  of  such 
talents  and  acquirements  as  to  rank  with  the  best  advocates  of  the 
Royal  Court.  Ought  such  men  to  be  neglected  and  go  unhonored 
in  any  society  ?  Certainly  not,  still  less  for  such  shams  as  are 
every  day  met,  not  only  in  Guernsey,   but  the  world  over — men 

*A  society  called  the  Society  de  Guernsais  has  been  formed  with  the  special 
object  of  preserving  the  French-Guernsey  language. 


242  RAMBLING     REMINISCENSES. 

whom  the  world  calls  i^reat  and  noble,  and  are  only  so  on  the 
outside,  like  the  ^riants  one  sees  in  the  pantomines  who  are  made 
of  paste- board,  and  have  a  very  ordinary  sized  man  moving 
about  in  them. 

Mr.  Tupper  became,  in  time,  one  of  our  warmest  friends  and  we 
cannot  allow  the  opportunity  to  pass,  when  his  name  is  mentioned, 
without  paying  a  tribute  to  his  memory.  He  was  a  man  of  vig- 
orous intellect,  large  heart,  just  and  noble  sentiments.  He  was 
not  brought  up  to  enervating  luxury.  His  father  was  poor — there 
was  more  bread  than  butter  in  that  family,  but  means  were  found 
to  enable  him,  after  completing  his  academic  education  at  Eliza- 
beth College,  to  enter  the  celebrated  law  school  at  Caen,  in  Nor- 
mandy, where  he  was,  in  due  season,  graduated.  Returning 
liome,  he  devoted  himself  to  the  law  practice  and  met  with  large 
success.  Subsequently  he  was  elected  to  the  States  and  soon  be- 
came the  leader  of  that  body  and  conspicuous  for  his  liberal  and 
enlightened  statesmanship.  In  private,  he  was  noted  for  his  be- 
nevolence and  generosity,  and  in  public  and  private  lor  the  warmth 
of  his  temper,  which  occasionally  approached  to  bitterness,  in  his 
contests  with  the  narrow  party  of  obstruction,  composed  of  the 
old  school,  or  men  inimical  to  all  change.  Sir  Stafford  Carey,  we 
have  said,  was  a  man  with  a  presence.  Mr.  Tupper  was  a  man 
with  a  manner.  By  manner  we  mean  that  invisible  qualfty  which 
insensibly  pervades,  with  the  happiest  effect,  the  works  of  genius, 
which  animates  the  pencil  of  the  artist,  the  pen  of  the  poet,  and 
the  sentiments  of  the  orator.  Such  was  his  manner  that  he  was  ir- 
resistibly charming.  The  vsarmth  with  which  he  received  his 
friends,  the  vivacity  with  which  he  spuke,  the  skill  with  which  he 
told  an  anecdote,  the  charily  with  which  he  viewed  the  short  com- 
ings of  his  neighbors,  the  ardor  with  which  he  denounced  a  wrong, 
the  fidelity  with  which  he  adhered  to  his  friends,  in  good  and  evil 
report, in  a  word  his  character  and  his  manner  drew  round  him  hosts 
of  friends  and  admirers  whom  he  held  by  a  power  no  language  can 
i^xpress.  And  yet  this  irreproachable  and  magnetic  man  had  ene 
rnies  who  pursued  him  with  relentless  hatred  to  the  grave.  Death 
has  placed  him  beyond  their  reach.  For  ourselves,  we  felt  for 
him  the  affection  of  a  brother,  admired  his  virtues,  his  talents,  his 
acquirements,  his  sou/ — we  never  met  him  without  a  rising  sense 
of  pleasure  in  our  breast,  feeling  a  strong  desire  to  be  nearer  to 
him.  This  accomplished  man  and  charming  companion,  who 
commenced  life  poor,  and  ended  it  the  wealthiest  man  in  the 
island,  died  while  we  were  yet  in  Guernsey;  was  accorded  a  public 
funeral ;  and  we  followed  his  remains  to  the  tomb    with  profound 

1  he  peasantry  are  industrious  and  thrifty,   and  make  successful 


RAMBLING     KExMINlSCENCES.  243 

farmers,  excellent  gardeners  and  fruit  growers,  skilled  mechanics 
brave  soldiers  and  hardy  sailors.  Their  qualities  have  been  illus- 
trated on  many  fields,  under  the  lead  of  such  martial  spirits  and 
Sarnian  heroes  as  Lord  de  Saumarez,  Major  Gen'l  Sir  Isaac  Brock, 
Captain  Charles  Andros,  R.  N.,  General  Sir  Gaspard  Le  Marchant 
and  others. 

Whether  they  be  descended  from  the  Seigneurs,  or  Serfs  o 
the  middle  ages,  we  know  not,  but  whatever  their  origin,  they  are 
a  staunch,  true  and  steadfast  race.  Many  of  them  preserve  their 
pedigrees  with  curious  pride,  which  they  would  hardly  do  if 
sprung  from  slaves,  and  have  the  spirit  of  a  long  line  of  ancestors 
as  honorable  as  any  of  the  islanders  of  whatever  rank,  and  they 
generally  begin  a  history  of  themselves  with  a  genealogy.  A 
Mr.  Guille,  a  cabinet  maker  of  the  Hauteville.  gave  us  on  one  oc- 
casion, when  we  called  to  have  a  chair  repaired,  an  interesting 
account  of  the  Guilles,  and  showed  his  family  tree.  Mr.  Guille 
knew  something  of  his  father,  a  little  of  his  grandfather,  and  up  to 
that  point  his  pedigree  was  history  beyond  fable  and  tradition. 
Yet  we  went  over  it  with  care,  though  all  family  history,  but  our 
own,  is  dull  reading,  and  we  felt  satisfied  it  was  as  reliable  as  a 
majority  of  such  genealogies,  though  it  made  out  he  was  de- 
scended from  Noah. 

Some  of  the  manor  houses  and  country  seats  are  handson;e  and 
commodious,  and  surrounded  by  paik  like  grounds,  ornamented 
with  ancient  forest  trees  and  fine  shrubberies;  they  look  like  Eng- 
lish halls.  The  principal  country  seats  are  the  Vaubelels,  Les 
Eperons,  Oberlands,  Haviland  Hall,  St.  Helene.  Rosenheim, 
Vanquiedor,  Saumarez.  Woodlands,  St.  George's.  Haye  de 
I'uits  and  the  Vallon.  Like  the  town  houses  their  interiors  are 
quite  artistic.  The  furniture,  much  of  it  old  oak,  the  decorations 
and  all  the  surroundings  are  in  extremely  good  taste  and  are  just 
what  one  would  expect  to  see  in  the  houses  of  cultivated    people. 

This  is  particularly  the  case  with  Rosenhein),  the  home  of  Gen. 
Huysh,  a  gem  in  itself,  in  its  furniture,  its  objects  of  art,  virtu,  etc., 
and  in  its  t;rounds,  conservatories,  etc. 

The  rural  population  generally  reside  in  substantial  stone 
houses,  some  of  them  of  great  antiquity  -one  of  them  in  St.  Mar- 
tin's Parish  having  A.  D.  1604,  the  date  of  its  erection,  cut  in  a  round 
over  the  front  entrance,  which  has  the  characteristic  Guernsey 
round  arched  stone  doorway.  These  farm  houses  and  cottages 
while  plainly  furnished  are  comfortable  and  neat,  and  there  is  noth- 
ing peculiar  to  them  but  the  round  arched  stone  doorway  and  the 
lern  bed.  This  lounge,  or  bed,  is  a  wooden  frame  placed  always 
on  one  side  or  the  other  of  the  principal  sitting  room  or  kitchen 
fireplace.     It  is  spread  with  fern  leav-es,  is  called  a  Hi  de  foziaille^ 


244  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

and  is  the  resting  place  of  the  farmer  and  his  employees  when 
they  return  of  an  evening,  and  of  any  visitor  who  may  come  in. 
These  beds  have  been  used  in  the  island  time  out  of  mind,  and 
are  connected  with  all  the  traditions  and  habits  of  the  people. 
The  writer  has  often,  when  stopping  during  a  pedestrian  tour,  re- 
posed upon  them,  finding  them  soft,  elastic,  and  with  an  agree- 
able aromatic  or  spicy  fern  odour.  The  peasants  are  noted  for 
honesty.  Robbery  and  thieving  are  scarcely  ever  known  in  the 
country  parishes  and  lost  articles,  when  found,  are  generally  re- 
stored. The  trades  people  while  fond  of  getting  a  good  price  for 
their  goods  and  wares,  rarely  resort  to  cheatery  and  we  have  known 
them  to  give  extra  weight,  or  an  additional  quantity  of  an  article, 
where  they  considered  the  customer  outwitted  in  the  price. 
They  take  pains  to  explain  to  strangers  the  difference  in  the 
Guernsey  weights  and  measures  from  those  of  France  and  Eng- 
land and  the  difference  in  the  value  of  the  foreign  and  the  Island 
currency,  and  for  the  most  part  they  are  good  humored  and 
obliging. 
^The  fourth  rank  is  composed  of  the  day  laborers. 

According  to  ancient  custom  they  were  thus  ranked,  that  is  to 
say  :  ist,  the  Seigneurs,  or  the  nobility  ;  2d,  the  Freemen,  or  franc 
tenants  ;  3d,  the  Freedmen  ;  4th,  the  Serfs,  and  as  it  was  the  cus- 
tom, if  not  the  law,  that  each  person  should  marry  in  his  own 
rank,  their  different  orders  were  long  preserved  uncontaminated. 
Within  the  past  century  there  has  been  a  good  deal  of  marrying 
between  the  Sixtys  and  the  Fortys,  the  wealth  of  the  Fortys  con- 
stituting a  very  acceptable  inducement  to  the  less  wealthy  of  the 
Sixtys.  But  the  Fortys  thus  admitted  into  the  higher  class  feel 
their  dependence  and  are  often  humiliated.  It  is  a  painful  situa- 
tion to  be  where  they  have  no  authority  or  influence  and  it  would 
be  wiser  probably  to  marry  in  their  own  class. 

From  what  has  gone  before,  the  reader  will  not  be  surprised  t* 
learn  that  the  Sixtys  regard  trade  as  derogatory,  or  infra  dii: 
and  that  no  one  engaged  in  it.  is  admitted  to  their  society,  nor  ar- 
such  persons  allowed,  with  their  consent,  to  fill  offices  of  dignity  c 
profit.  An  election  for  Judge  or  Jurat  of  the  Royal  Court  oc 
curred  while  we  were  in  the  Island.  Accepting  an  invitation  to 
be  pr'esent,  we  attended  the  states  of  election  on  the  occasion. 

Abraham  Hishop,  a  prosperous  and  wealthy  merchant,  was 
nominated  for  the  post.  His  election  was  opposed  by  one  of  the 
Sixtys,  upon  the  grounds  of  Mr.  Bishop's  connection  with  trade 
and  his  consequent  unfitness  for  the  position  This  ancient 
policy  on  part  of  the  old  families,  has  excluded  from  the  States, 
in  times  passed  and  still  does  so,  many  men  of  character  and 
talents  for  legislative  work.     And  men  have  been  elected  merely 


I 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  245 

because  they  were  descendants  of  the  old  Seigneurs,  who  were 
hopelessly  eccentric,  or  congenitally  stupid.  The  States  have 
not  heretofore  been  noted  for  the  acumen,  the  efficiency  or  the 
learning  of  its  members,  though  that  body  has  never,  at  any  time> 
been  entirely  without  men  of  good  parts.  To  raise  the  standard 
of  ability  in  the  House  by  electing  the  better  men  of  the  Fortys 
was  not  agreeable  to  the  Sixtys— still  less  an  effort  to  purge  the 
public  councils  of  all  who  from  great  age,  incapacity  or  bad  char- 
acter were  unsuited  for  its  duties.  While  such  a  policy  would 
have  given  moral  weight  and  political  strength  to  the  States  it 
would  have  impaired  the  influence  of  those  who  have  so  long  con- 
trolled it.  And  this  was  something  which  could  not  be  tolerated. 
Like  Juba,  King  of  Numidia,  who  had  Roman  senators  in  his- 
train,  the  Sixtys  like  to  have  Fortys  following  at  their  heels.  ' 

The  deputy  who  stood  forward  to  oppose  Mr.  Bishop's  election 
went  on  sharply  to  criticise  his  presumption  in  allowing  his  name 
to  be  presented,  and  this  while  he  admitted  Mr.  B.  to  be  a  man  of 
capacity,  of  fortune  and  of  deep  stake  in  the  community.  Though 
this  was  not  denied,  the  deputy  said  Mr.  Bishop's  business  pur- 
suits, his  want  of  social  standing,  and  his  lack  of  special  legal 
training,  (something  by  the  way  which  none  of  the  Jurats  had  ex- 
cept the  Bailiff)  altogether  disqualified  him  for  the  office. 

The  member  who  had  adventurously  nominated  Mr.  B.  feebly 
essayed  to  justify  his  course,  as  taken  in  accordance  with  the  lib- 
eral tendencies  of  the  age,  and  in  the  hope  of  securing  more  pro- 
gressive ideas  and  efficiency  in  the  States,  but  his  remarks  were 
so  badly  received  that  he  soon  resumed  his  seat  amid  the  ill  sup- 
pressed sneers  of  that  haughty  aristocracy,  which  hardly  regarded 
Mr.  Bishop  as  better  than  a  huckster,  and,  of  course,  the  election 
went  against  the  Merchant  Prince,  as  Mr.  Bishop  was  sometimes 
styled. 

The  ancient  Greek  gods  were  jealous  of  those  who  tried  to  vie 
with  them.  Apollo  slew  Marsyas  for  daring  to  contend  with  him 
on  the  lyre.  Minerva  changed  Arachne  into  a  spider  for  boast- 
ing superiority  to  her.  The  Sovereign  of  the  Gods  could,  not  en- 
dure the  luxury  and  pride  of  the  earthly  despot  and  it  became  the 
business  of  Nemesis  to  compass  his  destruction.  She  invoked 
against  him  Ate  or  infatuation.  Ate  darkens  his  mind  and  forces 
him  to  enter  of  his  own  will  on  the  path  whose  end  is  destruction. 
It  seems  to  have  been  an  article  of  an  Athenian  creed  that  there 
was  a  sort  of  wickedness  in  one  free  man  attempting  to  rise  up  to 
or  above  the  level  of  his  fellow  citizens.  This  was  a  kind  of  in- 
verted doctrine  of  the  dfvine  right  of  kings  and  traces  of  this  sort 
of  thing  may  be  seen  in  the  history  of  Guernsey. 

The  reader  must  not  infer  from  all  this   that  the  Sixtys  in  the 

(62) 


246  RAMBLINXt    reminiscenxes. 

States  are  milk  sops,  far  from  it.  For  centuries  they  looked  upon 
their  Jurats  as  personages  of  very  great  dignity.  Several  of  those 
on  the  bench  in  former  times  were  men  of  ability  and  learning, 
some  kept  up  much  state  in  their  living,  all  were  of  the  Seigneur 
class,  and  they  do  not  wish  the  office  to  decline  in  dignity  by  the 
introduction  to  it  of  persons  of  inferior  caste.  This  it  is  and  noth- 
ing more.  They  consider,  in  fact,  that  they  owe  a  duty  to  society 
and  that  it  would  be  a  deriliction  of  duty  to  vote  a  F'orty,  even  if 
the  Forty  was  well  qualified  and  above  reproach,  into  the  high 
office  of  Jurat.  So  far  from  being  milk  sops,  the  Guernsey  Sixtys 
as  a  rule  are  men  of  great  cleverness,  only  a  little  behind  the  age. 
or  Torys  de  fond  au  comble  ;  they  are  men  of  nicety  of  principle, 
.a  dignified  sense  of  honor,  refinement  of  feeling,  in  a  word  of  such 
tastes,  sentiments  and  habits  as  are  engendered  and  cherished  by 
education,  and  the  pursuit,  however  desultory,  of  knowledge,  and 
these  qualities  impart  a  kind  of  serenity  and  blandness  to  the 
whole  atmosphere  of  Sarnian  society  highly  grateful  to  the  culti- 
vated visitor. 

THE   SPORTING   CLUB. 

Some  of  our  most  enjoyable  days  were  spent  on  L'ancresse 
Common,  first  as  a  guest  and  afterwards  as  a  member  of  the 
"Sporting  Club."  This  club  is  of  great  antiquity,  was  no  doubt, 
founded  at  a  time  when  there  was  game  to  be  had,  which  is  no 
longer  the  case,  and  when  fishing,  as  an  amilsement,  was  more 
com.mon  than  now.  To  day  it  is  merely  a  dining  club,  the 
members  driving  to  the  common  and  spending  the  day  idly  wan- 
dering about,  looking  out  upon  the  ocean,  as  it  rolls  on  the  shore 
with  musical,  lapping  sound,  and  inhaling  the  air.  fragrant  with 
the  breath  of  wild  flowers.  This  common,  and  the  clifTs  and  co- 
tils  are  f.mious  for  the  purity  of  the  air,  the  sweetness  of  the  wa- 
ter which  flows  from  their  little  springs,  the  fertile  vallies  that  lie 
between,  and  for  the  plants  and  herbs  which  are  interspersed  with 
the  grass.  These  are  said  to  give  a  peculiar  flavor  and  richness  to  the 
milk  and  butter  of  the  cows  pasturing  on  them.  Guernsey  butter  is 
unquestionably  good,  but  we  do  not  credit  this  statement  any  more 
than  the  story  told  of  Helicon,  whose  plants  were  said  to  cause 
the  serpents  that  fed  upon  them  to  lose  their  venom.  The  Guern- 
sey people  believe  it  all  the  same. 

After  the  best  part  of  the  day  is  thus  spent,  the  members  assem- 
ble at  the  club  house  at  6  o'clock  for  dinner,  and  nowhere  are  bet- 
ter dinners  served  than  at  the  Sporting  Club.  After  several  hours 
spent  at  the  table,  the  Club,  with  ils  guests,  returns  to  town  by 
the  light  of  the  stars,  in  omnibusses,  reluctant  to  separate  sooner 
than  is  absolutely  necessary. 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  247 

The  President  of  the  Club,  when  ue  first  dined  with  it,  was  Maj. 
Genl.  Barry,  Royal  Engineers,  a  venerable  patriarch,  who,  though 
past  80,  was  not  infirm,  but  erect  and  stalely,  and  full  of  the 
peculiar  wit  and  humor  of  that  splendid  Irish  race  from  which  he 
was  sprung-,  and  of  which  he  was  an  ornament.  At  the  lower  end 
of  the  table  sat  Rear  Admiral,  Sausmarez  Brock,  R.  N.,  Vice- 
President,  who  was  hardly  less  winsome  than  the  President,  and 
who  never  failed  to  entertain  us  with  his  experiences  afloat  and 
ashore,  in  India  and  Africa,  but  especially  in  the  Crimea,  where  he 
was  Military  Governor  of  Eupatoria  — events  to  which  his  memory 
fondly  clung.  His  anecdotes,  equally  amusing  and  instructive,  are 
worthy  of  a  place  in  the  Guernsey  library.  To  the  right  of  the 
President  sat  the  Lt.  Bailiff,  the  present  Sir  E.  MacCulloch,  a  tall, 
thin,  refined  looking  old  man.  amiable,  engaging  and  entertain- 
ing,— mild  and  circumspect  in  private  and  public.  To  the  left  of  the 
V.  P.  sat  the  late  J.  Priaulx,  the  noblest  Roman  of  them  all,  a  man  of 
gentle  and  polished  manners,  but  who  at  times  of  excitement,  be- 
came somewhat  reckless  in  tone  and  bearing  and  oblivious  to  the 
conventionalities  of  society.  The  generosity  of  his  heart,  his  in- 
flexible integrity  and  his  noble  aspect,  gave  something  of  dignity 
to  his  language  and  gestures,  however  extravagant  they  might  be 
at  times.  Opposite  Mr.  Priaulx  sat  Col.  Durnford,  who  was  re 
garded  as  a  native  born  Sixty,  having  intermarried  with  one  of 
the  manorial  families.  He  was  mild,  polite,  affable  and  moderate. 
He  courted  the  good  will  of  others  and  imparted  to  them  his  own. 
He  was  neither  wit  nor  humorist,  but  in  his  face,  his  sentiments  and 
his  language,  there  was  something  so  honest  and  engaging  that 
one  was  quickly  charmed  and  attracted.  The  rest  of  the  mem- 
bers seated  themselves  promiscuously  and  were — we  take  a  sad 
pleasure  in  preserving  their  names — : 

General  Barry,  Ri)yal  Engineers; 

Admiral  Brock.  Roval  Navy  ; 

Sir  Edgar  MacCulloch.  Lt.  Bailifl': 

Joshua  Priaulx,  Seigneur  of  Comte; 

Joshua  Gosselin,  of  Springfield  ; 

Julius  Carey,  Premier  Connetable  ; 

Col.  Durnford,  R.  A.,  of  Havalet; 

John  Le  Mottee,  Royal  Court; 

Col.  Bell,  O.  A.  D.,  of  Swiss-ville; 

A.  D.  MacGregor,  of  Melrose; 

P.  S.  Dobree,  of  Ronceval ; 

Le  M.  Thomas  Le  Marchant,  of  Haye  de  Puits. 

Gen.  Barry,  Admiral  Brock,  Mr.  Priaulx,  Col.  Durnford  and 
the  members  generally,  had  been  great  travelers  and  had  grown 
thoroughly  liberal  and  cosmopolitan — were  without  the  limitations 


248  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 

and  prejudices  of  nationalities,  races  and  sects.  It  is  the  fortune 
of  most  men  who  mingle  in  the  world  and  attain  to.  even  middle 
age,  to  make  many  friends  and  lose  them  in  the  course  of  nature. 
Such  has  been  our  fate. 

Of  the  fourteen  members  above  enumerated,  eight  are  in  their 
graves.  Their  pleasant  and  familiar  faces  will  be  met  no  more  here 
below,  yet  the  club  exists,  the  music  of  birds  is  still  heard  on  the 
common,  the  waves  murmur  ceaselessly  on  the  shore,  and  the  air  is 
still  full  of  the  aroma  ol  odoriferous  herbs  and  sweet  scented  flowers. 
Man  dies,  but  nature  lives,  and  we  recall  the  sad  lament  of  the 
poet :  "Woe  that  the  linden  and  the  vine  should  bloom,  and  a  just 
man  be  gathered  to  the  tomb."  Sausmarez,  Brock  and  his  insep- 
erable  boon  companion,  Barry,  are  gone  ;  Joshua  Priaulx  and  his 
old  crony,  Joshua  Gosselin,  two  jovial  men  who  enjoyed  life  so 
thoroughly  that  one  could  not  help  wishing  they  might  live  for- 
ever—their  visiting  cards  are  now  tombstones.  MacCiregor  and 
Dobree  are  gone — but  we  are  getting  blue.  The  dead  sleep  well. 
They  need  neither  sympathy  nor  tears,  and  as  for  regrets,  they 
are  unavailing.  We  cannot,  as  Lamb  lamented,  "lay  our  ineffect- 
ual fingers  on  the  spokes  of  the  great  wheel"  and  stop  where  we 
are.  Growing  old  is  a  part  of  the  inevitable  programme  of  life. 
It  belongs  to  the  natural  process  of  gradation,  by  which  nature 
accomplishes  all  her  work,  never  doing  anything  abruptly.  Men 
grow  and  bud  and  blossom  and  bear  fruit, or  live  barren  like  certain 
trees,  and  then  also  like  the  trees,  fade  and  fall  and  disappear. 
We  can  only  accept  the  situation. 

THE  INSTITUTIONS  OF  THE   ISLAND,  ETC. 

A  few  words  only  need  be  said  of  the  institutions  of  the  island. 
Guernsey  has  preserved  almost  in  their  original  form,  her  ancient 
municipal  charters  and  has  to  day  a  municipal  government  pre- 
cisely what  it  was  in  the  middle  ages,  and  they  enjoy  it  insecurity, 
though  it  is  behind  the  age.  They  have  preserved  their  laws, 
their  coinage  and  their  language,  though  none  of  them  are  Eng- 
lish. In  their  Norman  language  they  conduct  the  pleadings  in 
their  courts  and  the  affairs  of  their  States,  or  local  Parliament. 
Though  England  garrisons  the  island  for  defense,  no  British  sol- 
dier dare  arrest  a  Guernseyman,  and  the  Lieutenant  Governor 
himself  would  long  hesitate  before  he  would  encroach  upon  the 
local  police. 

These  ancient  laws  and  customs  of  the  island  are  very  superannu- 
ated in  some  points  and  very  little  in  harmony  with  modern  pro- 
gress. The  British  Parliament  wished,  years  ago,  to  introduce 
many  necessary  reforms  and  gradually  to  substitute  for  these  old 
Norman  laws  its  own  laws  and  authority,  but  this  the  Guernsey 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENSES.  249 

people  would  not  hear  of.  When  Parliament  sought  to  obtain  its 
ends  by  a  Royal  Commission,  the  States  answers  fiercely  :  "Are 
you  ignorant  that  you  are  not  our  masters  ?  We  have  never  been 
conquered  by,  nor  submitted  to  you.  Recollect  that  we  are  the 
descendants  of  the  Normans  of  the  Conquest,  and  that  our  ances- 
tors imposed  their  dominaticm  over  you."  Reasons  which  it  is 
very  certain  would  not  hold  good  before  heavy  ordinance.  The 
justice  of  these  views  was  recognized  ;  the  island  does  not  apper- 
tain to  the  English  government,  but  belongs  to  the  domain  of  the 
Queen,  who  is  its  suzerain,  and  who  yet  retains  the  prerogatives- 
of  the  Norman  Kings.  Thus  the  Parliament  held  in  check  by 
these  ancient  privileges  of  the  crown  saw  itself  powerless,  and 
everything  is  left  to  the  States.  Who  are  to  be  most  admired  in 
this  conflict  —  the  little  people  who  have  preserved  such  a  sacred 
regard  for  their  rights,  or  the  great  nation  which  respects  them? 
Such  is  nevertheless  the  cause  of  the  independence  af  the  island. 
That  their  liberty  has  not  been  sterile  is  apparant.  On  every  side 
are  seen  signs  of  activity  and  industry — not  only  in  the  smooth 
and  beautiful'roads,  in  the  substantial  character  of  their  houses,, 
but  in  the  general  well-being  of  the  community  and  at  the  gigantic 
granite  quays,  jetties  and  docks.  In  a  moral  point  of  view  they 
enjoy  religious  toleration  and  a  free  press.  Hence  strangers  col- 
lect in  great  numbers  in  all  the  channel  islands,  for  the  condition 
of  all  is  the  same,  attracted  by  the  fineness  of  th'e  climate,  the 
beauty  of  the  scenery  and  the  freedom  of  the  institutions. 

Many  of  the  manor  houses  still  standing  and  occupied,  bear  the 
names  of  the  Huguenots,  who  took  refuge  here.  The  Hauteville 
is  the  most  ancient  part  of  the  town,  but  the  Basseville  the  more 
populous  ;  it  is  principally  inhabited  by  merchants  and  those  con- 
nected with  the  trade  of  the  island. 

The  principal  towns  are  St.  Peter- port,  with  a  population  of 
17,000,  and  St.  Sampson's.  Of  the  latter  it  is  not  necessary  to  say 
more  than  that  it  is  ihe  chief  port  for  the  export  of  granite.  St. 
Peter  port  is  situated  on  the  northern  acclivities  of  the  island, 
nearly  opposite  and  in  full  view  of  the  islands  of  Herm,  Jeddo 
and  Serk,  three  m.iles  from  the  first  two  and  about  seven  miles 
from  the  last.  The  streets  wind  up  the  hills  and  with  the  excep- 
tion of  the  Avenue  Si.  Julien,  are  steep  and  narrow  but  are  well 
paved,  and  the  houses,  which  are  built  of  granite,  are  roomy  and 
substantial.  The  number  of  churches  is  large,  but  they  contain 
few  monuments  of  note,  with  the  exception  of  the  town  church  and 
the  Roman  Catholic  church,  in  which  there  aresome  good  pictures 
and  statues. 

HAUTEVILLE    HOUSE,  VICTOR   HUGO,  PRIVATE    THEATRICALS,  ETC. 

The  most  famous  house  in  the  island  is  that    of  the    illustrious 


(63) 


250  RAMBLING    REMINISCENSES. 

poet,  Victor  Hugo,  in  the  Hauteville.  On  the  summit  of  a  cliff,  it 
overlooks  the  town,  the  fort  and  the  immense  horizon  of  the  sea. 
The  house  awakens  a  lively  curiosity  in  all  visitors  to  the  island,' 
and  fabulous  stories  are  told  in  Guernsey  of  its  costly  furniture,  its 
massive  plate,  its  gorgeous  decorations. 

The  day  after  our  arrival  the  poet  invited  us  to  breakfast,  having 
"been  introduced  to  us  by  John  Talbot,  Esq.,  editor  of  theStnr— an 
invitation  we  accepted  with  much  pleasure,  and  this  was  the  be 
ginning  of  a  lasting  friendship  between  us  and  his  family,*  then 
consisting  of  Madam  Hugo,  his  sister-in-law.  Madam  Cheney,  and 
the  children  of  his  son,  Charles  Hugo.  This  is  not  the  place  to 
give  our  impressions  of  Victor  Hugo  nor  his  house — we  do  not 
wish  to  recall  anything  but  a  little  representation  which  was  given 
in  it  not  long  afterwards.  A  charade  was  performed  upon  a  sub- 
ject proposed  by  Victor  Hugo. 

In  the  first  scene  the  shadowy  Cymbeline  appears  enveloped  in 
clouds  of  tulle- illusion  and  having  at  her  feet  the  beautiful  Lean- 
•der,  pale  as  a  confirmed  poet.  Transparent  and  ideal  he  pays 
court  to  her  with  rhymes  and  sighs  something  after  the  style  of  an 
amorous  soni.et  of  romance. 

Leander,  immaterial  as  he  appears,  is  not  the  less  anxious  toob- 
tain  a  nocturnal  meeting  under  the  trees  and  upon  the  moss.  His 
eloquence  is  tran-sparent.  After  some  moments  of  cooing  in  prose 
and  verse  Cymbeline  consents,  and  to  the  end  that  'her  platonic 
lover  may  find  her  without  noise,  she  gives  him  the  key  of  her 
chamber,  a  delicate  little  key  of  gold,  a  real  piece  of  bijou,  which 
one  might  well  believe  was  made  to  open  the  door  of  the  heart  of 
a  young  girl. 

At  the  moment  when  Leander  disappears  the  reasonable  moral 
man  of  the  piece  enters  dressed  in  blue,  lie  is  a  fat  person  and 
a  rich  banker.  He,  like  Leander,  is  enamored  with  Cymbeline, 
but  he  loves  as  a  simple  mortal— a  staunch  man  of  business.  At 
his  sight  the  shadowy  Cymbeline  quickly  returns  to  the  prose  of 
every  day  life  and  descends  in  smiles  from  her  celestial  perch  to 
receive  this  kind  of  chrysalis  gentleman,  at  once  Marquis  and  pro- 
prietor, who  is  permitted  by  her  parents  to  love  her  when  Leander 
is  present,  but  Cymbeline  does  not  grant  him  this  privilege. 

The  Marquis  explains  to  her  what  folly  it  is  to  love  Leander; 
how  much  more  advantageous  to  accept  his  suit — he  will  open  to 
her  the  doors  of  a  luxurious  and  happy  life  in  his  Burgundian 
Chateau.  She  shall  sleep  late,  go  to  bed  early  as  Queen  of  Yuetot, 
she  shall  have  four  meals  a  day,  and  he  will  attend  her  with  paternal 

*Victor  Hugo  presented  the  writer,,  before  his  departure  for  America,  wiih 
his  likeness,  flatteringly  inscribed  in  his  own  handwriting.  It  is  preserved  at 
Steephill  as  a  precious  souvenier  of  the  immortal  poet. 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  25I 

care  at  them  all.  For  amusement  she  shall  hunt  the  wild  beast,  and 
enjoy  every  day  young  patridges  ^^arnished  with  wild  boars'  heads. 
Her  Sundays  shall  be  passed  at  Mass,  the  grand  Mass  and  at  Ves- 
pers. The  Marquis  ends  by  laying  his  heart,  his  kitchen  and  his 
hand  at  Cymbeline's  feet.  The  indignant  beauty  dismisses  this 
prosaic  lover,  who  withdraws  defeated,  but  not  discouraged,  with 
a  malicious  smile  in  which  can  be  seen  the  hope  of  ultirriate  tri- 
umph. 

The  final  soliloquy  of  Cymbeline: 

"This  Marquis,  lie  !  the  horrible  man  !  hast  thou  ever  seen  him.  ? 
To  hear  love  spoken  of  by  this  dolt  who  always  has  his  spoon  at 
his  mouth  !  To  eat !  who  eats  to  sleep  and  sleeps  to  snore.  While 
Leander,  the  zephyrs  scarcely  dare  supply  him  with  breath."  Sud- 
denly Cymbeline  stops  stupefied,  is  a  motionless  mass,  utterly  in- 
ert. Some  one  quickly  enters  by  the  window  and  throws  himself 
at  her  feet.  It  is  Leander,  his  cigar  in  his  mouth,  his  cravat  in 
disorder,  his  hair  unkempt,  drunk  as  a  lord.  The  Ex-Endymion 
throws  himself  upon  Cymbeline,  whom  he  imagines  to  be  the  daugh- 
ter of  the  porter,  a  certain  Manton,  with  whose  daughter  for  a  long 
time  he  has  secretly  threaded  the  ways  of  love. 

Stupefied  Cymbeline  seeks  to  escape  from  his  arms  and  make 
herself  known.  Leander  holds  her  by  right  of  conquest  and  to 
show  that  he  has  come  to  the  promised  rendezvous  draws  from 
his  pocket  a  key  which  causes  Cymbeline  to  raise  a  cry  of  horror. 
Instead  of  a  key  of  gold  he  presents  to  her  a  passport,  in  rusted 
iron  which  opens  the  way  to  Marten's  heart.  It  is  easy  to  believe 
that  this  ogress  key  would  have  eaten  up  the  little  key  of  gold  if 
they  had  not  met  in  the  same  pocket.  Happily  in  the  midst  of 
poor  Cymbeline's  confusion,  the  Marquis  reappears  with  the  key 
')f  gold. 

The  e«d  may  be  conjectured,  the  Marquis  stupefies  Leander  by 
his  presence  and  sobers  Cymbeline.  The  result  of  the  whole  thing 
is,  that  Cymbeline  and  he  marry  and  have  many  children. 

As  to  the  words  of  the  Charade,  they  were  anti-real,  improba- 
ble and  unfindable.  What  was  this  unknown  tongue?  No  one 
will  ever  seek  for  it.  No  one  will  ever  find  it.  No  one  will  ever 
know   it.     One  laughs  at  it  and  that  is  all. 


It  is  usual  in  the  island  to  provide  simUar  evening  amusements 
for  guests  and  we  shall  long  remember  with  pleasure  the  private 
amateur  Theatricals  at  Candie  got  up  by  Sir  Stafford  and  Lady 
Carey  and  by  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Joshua  Priaulx,  at  the  Mount,  and  the 
inimitable  and  side  splitting  comic  songs  of  Julius  Carey  and  others. 

The  drama  is  held  in  high  esteem  by  the  Guernsey  people  and 
actors  and  actresses  treated  with   much  civility.     A  pretty  actress 


252  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 

is  surrounded  by  the  fops,  who  do  not  hesitate  to  express  their  ad- 
miration for  her  as  a  glorious  creature.  "I  say  Nash  aw— that  I 
am— aw — really  not  accustomed — to  seeing^  such  lovely  creatures 
in  the  hay  market — aw — haw."  "You  are  quite  right"  responds 
de  Boots,  of  the  Guards,  who  is  leaning  against  the  side  of 
the  door.  "They  are  rare>  she  is-aw  a  most  glorious  creature-aw." 
There  are  several  halls  in  Peter- port  for  the  exhibition  of  plays  and 
a  small  but  comfortable  theatre.  The  exterior  isunimposing,  but  the 
mterior  well  decorated.  During  the  Winter  pantomimes,  historical 
dramas  and  other  plays  are  performed.  The  actors  and  actresses 
are  habited  in  the  costumes  of  the  people  at  the  period  when  the 
personages  represented  were  supposed  to  have  lived.  Whil^  the 
critics  prefer  the  drama,  the  people  like  best  comic  pieces,  in  which 
there  is  a  buffoon,  whose  grmiaces  and  low  jests,  like  those  of  buf- 
foons elsewhere,  obtain  the  greatest  share  of  applause.  The 
music  which  accompanies  the  acting,  or  "orchestra,"  is  inferior^ 
unless,  as  is  sometimes  the  case,  the  garrison  band  plays.  The 
island  cannot  boast  of  any  native  dramatists  and  the  plays  are  gen- 
erally French,  or  adaptations  from  the  French,  though  rarely  if 
ever,  from  such  tragic  writers  as  Corneille  or  Racine,  Crebillon,  or 
Voltaire.  P^ew  of  these  modern  adaptations  can  stand  the  test  of 
criticism,  but  are  popular  with  the  masses,  as  they  abound  in 
show,  noise  and  nonsense.  Though  this  is  so,  one  must  not  con- 
clude that  the  average  Guernsey  man  is  miserably  ignorant  of  the- 
atrical matters,  that  they  have  banished  all  sense  and  propriety 
from  their  stage  and  that  they  cannot  be  pleased  with  anything  but 
farcical  buffoonry.  At  times  they  have  in  the  island  excellent 
companies  and  plays  acted  in  the  theatre,  or  in  their  houses  by 
amateurs,  in  which  there  is  great  purity  and  force  of  language 
harmony  of  versification,  intricacy  of  plot,  multiplicity  of  incident, 
probability  of  catastrophe,  variety  of  decoration  and  many  other 
excellencies  expected  in  modern  drama.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Wybert 
Rousby  were  the  lessees  of  the  theatre  at  the  time  we  are  writing 
about,,  and  the  best  amateurs  were  Julius  Carey,  since  Constable, 
Col.  Wm.  Bell,  Secretary  to  the  (lovernor,  and  Charles  Carey, 
son  of  the  Bailiff,  whose  performances  were  always  rapturousl> 
received. 

Though  the  people  are  French  in  descent  and  speak  a  dialect  of 
the  language,  their  manners  and  customs  are  English  rather  than 
French.  None  of  the  peculiar  restraints  thrown  around  the  inter- 
course of  young  pveople  of  opposite  se.xcs  in  France,  exist  in  Guern- 
sey. On  the  contrary,  their  intercourse  is  without  restraint  as  in 
England  or  America  and  every  belle  commands  as  many  adorers 
as  she  lists,  who  love  her  platonically — never  disunitvii|  the  idea  oi 
her  beauty  from  that  of  her  virtue.   Love  is  not  considered  a  mere 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  253 

matter  of  convenience,  or  a  commerce  oflibertinism,  but  as  a  laud- 
able passion,  a  powerful  mover  of  the  heart,  and  as  a  ^reat  induce- 
ment towards  a  display  of  that  courage  and  virtue  which  charac- 
erize  heroes. 

Depraved  men  of  the  style  of  Hugo's  Leander,  will  not  easily 
be  brought  to  believe  that  love  may  be  an  innocent  commerce  of 
gallantry  and  reciprocal  affection,  of  which  no  one  need  be  asham- 
ed. Yet  in  the  eyes  of  these  Islanders  nothing  is  more  true.  The 
beau  makes  no  concealment  of  the  lady  whom  he  loves  and  hon- 
ors. The  most  modest  poet  names  in  his  verses  the  fair  one  who 
inspired  them  ;  and  the  chastest  lady  never  blushes  to  be  the  ob- 
ject of  a  guiltless  passion,  nor  scruples  to  return  it  publicly.  They 
know  how  to  keep  love  and  vice  apart,  and  though  at  bottom 
their  passions  be  still  the  same  with  the  rest  of  mankind,  yet  with 
them  the  heart  and  the  senses  have  different  routes  and  their  ob- 
jects are  seldom  the  same.  They  know  the  difference  between  an 
ordinary  woman  and  that  sublime  beings  the  divine  sovereign  of 
their  thoughts,  an  object  of  the  greatest  reverence,  never  to  be  ap- 
proached but  as  an  angel  clad  in  human  form. 

PUBLIC  LECTURES,   ETC. 

It  may  be  further  remarked  that  learning  is  not  so  inuch  culti- 
vated as  it  might,  and  under  other  circumstances  probably  would 
be,  and  when  it  is,  it  is  not  so  much  for  the  love  of  it,  as  for  its  use 
and  convenience  in  common  life  Yet  there  are  men  of  learning 
in  the  Island,  as  we  have  seen,  and  a  well  patronized  College, 
which  under  the  late  head  master.  Rev.  M.  Corfe  and  his  prede- 
cessors, acquired  much  reputation;  and  a  considerable  stock  of 
books  in  the  College  library  and  those  of  the  Mechanics  Institute 
and  the  Guille-Allez  collection.  Besides  this,  Osmond  de  Beau- 
voir  Priaulx,  of  London,  a  wealthy  and  highly  cultivated  Guern 
seyman,  has  presented  his  large  and  well  selected  library  to  the 
Island,  and  at  his  death  it  is  to  be  placed  in  Candie  House,  which, 
with  its  beautiful  grounds,  was  also  presented  by  Mr.  Priaulx  to 
the  town  parish,  of  which  he  is  a  native.  This  gift  adds  so  largely 
to  the  stock  of  books,  in  the  Island,  that  students  will  possess  fa- 
cilities for  conducting  their  investigations,  never  before  enjoyed. 
Mr.  Priaulx's  generosity  and  public  spirit  are  worthy  of  every 
praise.  In  all  this  man  of  true  nobleness  of  soul  does,  he  is  animated 
by  an  ardent  desire  to  promote  the  public  good  of  Guernsey.  The 
present  libraries  are  largely  attended  by  readers, — so  much  so, 
that  it  entirely  refutes  the  idea  sometimes  advanced  by  cockney 
tourists,    that  the  people  are  destitute  of  literary  taste. 

Among  these  readers  there  are  some  whose  lives  have  been  de- 
voted to  the  acquisition  of  knowledge,  such  as  Mr.  Metevier,  and 


(f,A\ 


254  RAMBLING     REMINISOKXCES. 

F.  B.  Tupper,  Osmond  Priaulx  and  Paul  Dobrec,  whose  names 
are  not  confined  to  the  narrow  limits  of  the  Island,  but  are  known 
to  men  of  science  and  literature  throui^hout  Europe  ;  men  who  do 
honor  to  their  country  by  their  mental  acquisitions.  A  frequent 
visitor  to  the  libraries  and  to  the  fields  where  the  rural  population 
were  engaged  in  cultivating  their  crops,  and  to  the  extensive  stone 
quarries  in  the  vale  parish  and  other  spots  where  work  was  progress- 
ing, we  could  but  admire  the  quiet  demeanor,  industry  and  intelli- 
gence of  the  laborers  and  were  happy  to  learn  that  they  did  not 
labor  in  vain.  Few  working  classes  in  F.uropeare  better  off  than 
those  of  Guernsey  ;  who  have  comparatively  little  to  complain  of. 
They  are  well  paid,  and  are  m  comfortable  circumstances  when 
moderately  prudent.  Provisions  and  other  necessaries  of  life  are 
cheap  in  comparison  with  the  prices  in  England,  and  this  class  de- 
posit out  of  their  modest  earnings  considerable  sums  in  the  savings 
banks.  Much  has  been  done  by  the  more  intelligent  and  pro- 
gressive portion  of  the  people  to  amuse  and  instruct  the  working 
classes,  and  by  lectures,  penny  readings  and  other  pastimes,  in 
•which  there  is  a  judicious  leaven  of  amusement,  to  draw  them  off 
from  restaurants,  gin  palaces,  and  other  objectionable  evening  re- 
ports. The  plan  met  with  much  success,  and  the  rooms  where 
they  occurred  were  crowded  week  after  week.  The  attractiveness 
of  these  reunions  was  increased  by  the  addition  of  music  and  sing- 
ing. Regarding  the  movement  as  wise  and  well  intentioned,  it 
gave  us  pleasure  to  encourage  them  by  accepting,  from  time  to 
time,  invitations  to  preside  over  them.  On  one  particular  occa- 
sion, the  following  is  the  brief  report  of  what  occurred,  taken  from 
the  "Guernsey  Star,"  (Newspaper). 


ST.  John's  UKAUiNCis. 

The  first  of  these  interesting  and  instructive  meetings  was  held 
yesterday  in  the  St.  John's  Boy's  School,  the  chair  being  "taken 
by  Col.  Peyton,  who,  on  this  occasion,  spoke  in  able  and  e!(H]iient 
terms  of  the  advantages  of  education,  his  whole  speech  fro-n  he- 
ginning  to  end,  evincing  signs*  of  deep  and  caretul  thought,  and 
drawing  from  the  audience  continued  and  hearty  applause.  His  re- 
marks were  in  substance  as  follows  : 

C^)l.  Pe\  ton  said  that  concuniiT^  \ery  heartilv  in  the  object 
sought  to  be  se(Mired  \)\  the  St.  balm's  S(>cic't\-,  hr  liad  readliy 
consented  to  taki'  the  chair  upon  this  occasion  \''  o;i''  regretted, 
however,  more  than  himself  that  the  Committer  w.'s  uiuUr  the 
necessity  of  extending  the  in\  itation  to  him.  as  this  was  due  to  the 
fact  \h'M  his  iVitaid,  Mr.  Hhnulell,  was  unable  to  occupy  the  chair. 
He  had  usually  done  so  the  past  season,  but  was  pre\ented  now 
by  the  melancholy  cause  of  ill  health.       fliis  aniiabif    and   accoin- 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENXES.  255 

plished  gentleman  had  contributed  so  much,  said  Col.  Peyton,  to 
the  success  of  these  rcuuiojis  by  his  zeal  and  enero^y,  by  the  ex- 
tent and  variety  of  his  knowledgfe  and  the  popular  character  of  his 
lectures,  that  his  absence  this  Winter  would  be  seriously  felt,  not 
only  by  the  Committee  of  Management,  whose  labors  he  smoothed 
and  lightened,  but  yet  more  by  the  large  and  appreciative  audi- 
ences his  name  and  fame  always  brou^jht  together  in  this  Hall. 
Since,  however,  we  are  unfortunately  deprived  of  Mr.  Blundell's 
valuable  services,  he  was  glad  to  supply  his  place  on  this  occasion, 
and  he  trusted  it  would  not  be  long  before  we  had  the  pleasure  to 
see  him  once  more  in  renewed  health  and  strength,  occupying  his 
accustomed  position  on  this  platform. 

Having  said  this  much,  Colonel  Peyton  remarked  that  he  might 
very  well  resume  his  seat,  but  he  would  probably  be  excused,  if  he 
availed  himself  of  the  opportunity  to  say  a  few  words  in  regard 
to  the  laudable  objects  sought  to  be  attained  by  this  and  similar 
societies  ;  namely,  the  amusement  and  instruction  of  the  people. 

No  truth  was  more  fully  recognized  nowadays,  than  that  the 
people  must  in  self  defence  be  educated.  It  is  justly  considered 
necessary  to  their  protection,  as  well  from  fr^es  within  as  without. 
Prom  the  indigenous  vandal  or  gamin,  who,  according  to  Lord 
Macaulay,  is  growing  up  under  the  shadow  of  our  Churches,  Uni- 
versities, Libraries  and  Museun^s,  as  from  the  foreign  invader,  who 
would,  on  the  first  appearance  of  weakness,  seek  to  overrun  and 
desolate  the  land.  In  niodern  times  no  ignorant  and  unenlight- 
ened people,  how  numerous  and  spirited  soever,  are  secure  in  the 
presence  of  a  valiant  and  educated  enemy.  The  history  of  the 
recent  F'ranco-German  war  forcibly  illustrated  this  axiom.  The 
total  defeat  and  overthrow  of  the  French  armies,  so  distinguished 
in  history  for  their  prowess,  the  breakdown  of  the  government 
more  characterized  under  the  second  Empire  by  an  intriguing 
spirTt  than  a  wise  diplomacy,  and  the  volatile  character  of  the  peo- 
ple, a  trait  aggravated  by  their  ignorance  and  superstition,  rend- 
ered them  all  but  helpless  in  presence  of  their  educated  and  en- 
terprising enemy 

A  prudent  statesmanship  deeply  impressed  with  these  occur- 
rences, is  seeking,  for  forewarned  is  forearmed,  toj  provide 
against  the  repetition  of  such  disastrous  history  on  British  soil — 
not  so  much  by  heavy  ordnance,  numerous  battalions,  strong 
fortresses  and  iron  clads,  though  these  precautions  are  not  neg- 
lected, as  by  popular  education. 

Colonel  Peyton  said  that  he  was  inculcating  no  new  lessons. 
Nearly  800  years  before  Christ.  Hosea.one  of  the  minor  prophets, 
declared,  ''  My  people  are  destroyed  for  lack  of  kuoivledfrey  And 
it  cannot  be  doubted  that  the  ignorance  of  the  Jewish    people  be- 


256  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

trayed  them  into  many  crimes  and  consequent  miseries.  And 
this  has  been  the  history  of  other  nations  and  other  and  later 
times,  as  it  is  sure  to  be  that  of  every  nation  and  people  who 
neglect  a  matter  of  such  gravity.  History,  like  everything  hu- 
man, continued  the  Colonel,  was  undergoing  a  revolution.  The 
idea  formerly  attached  to  history  was  that  it  was  a  kind  of  biog- 
raphy of  kings  and  nobles  so  written  as  to  inspire  a  reverence  for 
the  Divine  and  hereditary  wisdom.  The  battles  in  which  these 
heroes  fought  were  described  by  particular  scenery  in  which  kings 
had  cloven  the  skulls  of  their  antagonists  with  the  battle  axe,  or 
had  fought  with  superhuman  pertinacity  and  success.  The  world 
has  become  tired  of  such  histories,  of  such  fancy  pictures.  The 
peoples  were  forgotten  in  the  accounts  of  battles  which  they 
fought  and  where  they  died  by  thousands.  They  were  not  al- 
lowed to  appear  in  tournaments,  whose  silken  tents  their  hands 
wrought,  whose  queens  of  beauty  their  skill  arrayed  in  brilliant 
costumes.  It  was  forgotten  who  built  the  castle  where  the  petty 
lord  displayed  his  tyranny,  or  the  vast  cathedral  towering  like  a 
glorious  dream  from  earth  to  Heaven.  How  the  people  pro- 
gressed from  slavery  to  liberty,  how  the  arts  advanced  from  the 
rudeness  of  earlier  times  had  been  passed  over,  totally  ignored, 
though  all  the  spacious,  magnificent,  the  vast  and  wonderful  ex- 
hibitions of  human  enterprise,  with  which  the  world  is  covered, 
we  owe  to  toil,  to, the  goddess  of  poverty. 

Sir  Walter  Scott  first  broke  the  sleep  of  history  in  his  novels, 
and  history  has  assumed  a  truer  and  nobler  position.  It  is  now 
written  in  a  different  spirit,  the  people  are  viewed  in  a  more  be- 
coming light  and  awarded  their  real  position.  All  the  merit  is 
not  now  given  to  the  warrior  and  statesman — the  artist,  the  me- 
chanic and  the  philosopher  come  in  for  their  share.  It  is  known 
and  acknowledged,  at  least  among  Anglo  Saxons  the  world  over, 
that  the  source  of  all  political  power  is  the  people  and  the  soiirce 
of  all  national  wealth  their  industry.  Hence  their  was  in  Amer 
iea,  statues  to  the  tallow  chandler's  son,  Franklin,  who  in  the  Ian 
guage  ofManilius,  as  applied  by  Turgot,  '"Snatched  the  lightning: 
Yrom  Heaven  and  the  sceptre  from  tyrants."  And  in  England  to 
Sir  Humphrey  Davy,  the  son  of  a  Cornish  wood-carver,  whose 
discoveries  in  chemistry  have  surrounded  his  name  with  extraor- 
dinary brilliancy  ;  and  since  the  Crimean  war,  monuments  to  the 
guardsmen  as  well  as  officers.  This  more  just  appreciation  of  the 
people  and  what  is  due  to  them,  is  a  happy  omen  of  the  future. 
The  Omnipitent  has  taught  us  the  unity  of  the  race,  ni)t  only  by 
creating  us  in  his  own  image,  but  by  declaring  that  he  has  made 
of  one  blood  all  the  nations  of  the  earth.  Who  then  with  any 
broad  human  sympathy  and  Christianity  can  look  upon  the  face  of 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENSES.  257 

a  fellow  human  being,  however  destitute,  degraded  and  despised, 
without  recognizing  in  him  a  brother  sprung  from  the  same 
origin  and  inheriting  the  same  immortal  destiny. 

Let  us,  therefore,  unite  in  our  humble  way,  in  the  good  work  of 
providing  a  proper  moral  and  intellectual  training  for  the  masses. 
The  good  and  wise  of  this  country  and  America  have  long  sought 
to  accomplish  this  mission  by  scattering  abroad  the  treasures  of 
knowledge  by  bringing  useful  information  within  the  reach  of  all, 
and  thus  to  exalt,  to  teach  and  to  bless  mankind.  One  of  the 
most  eminent  laborers  in  this  field  was  the  late  Lord  Brougham, 
who,  as  principal  founder  and  promoter  of  the  society  for  the  dif- 
fusion of  useful  knowledge,  and  author  of  many  articles  in  the 
Penny  Magazine,  did  yeoman's  service  in  the  cause.  The  chair- 
man regretted  that  he  had  not  been  able  to  procure  in  the  island  a 
copy  of  the  works  of  this  great  scholar,  essayist,  historian,  lawyer, 
and  statesman,  else  he  might  have  quoted  many  eloquent  passages 
in  support  of  the  general  proposition  which  he  had  enunciated, 
namely,  that  intellectual  advancement  was  the  sure  forerunner  of 
moral  improvement;  that  we  had  but  to  make  the  people  wiser, 
to  refine  and  make  them  better. 

"We  owe  it,"  said  Colonel  Peyton,  "no  less  to  ourselves  than  to 
society,  that  we  should  shed  abroad  the  light  of  education.  By 
education  he  did  not  mean  the  simple  poring  over  books,  but  the 
whole  process  by  which  we  draw  forth  the  powers  and  capacities 
of  the  human  mind  into  full  and  free  activity;  and  it  is  just  in  pro- 
portion as  the  inward  and  originally  slumbering  powers  of  the  in- 
tellect are  drawn  out,  that  man  rises  above  the  sphere  of  a  mere 
physical  existence  and  comes  to  be  guided  by  his  reason,  his  con- 
science and  his  feelings. 

Such  societies  as  this  were  laboring  successfully  in  one  direction 
by  uniting  oral  instruction  with  rational  amusement  during  hours 
when  the  most  laborious  have  a  little  leisure.  The  long  evenings 
of  winter  cannot  be  spent  here,  where  instructive  lectures  are  de- 
livered, well  selected  extracts  from  good  books — books  through 
which  the  current  of  wisdom  flows — are  read  and  sweet  music  is 
discoursed  without  a  certain  cultivation  and  refinement  of  both 
mind  and  heart  following.  This  is  a  great  result  to  obtain  ;  there  is 
another.  II  by  the  attractive  character  of  these  entertainments 
you  keep  a  single  individual  from  the  seductions  and  charms  of 
the  public  houses,  from  the  hardening  and  degrading  influences 
of  the  gaming  table,  or  if  you  prevent  one  from  dissipating  his 
time  in  strenuous  idleness,  your  labors  will  not  have  been  in  vain. 
All  success,  then,  to  your  society.  (Loud  cheers  followed  this 
address.) 

On  another  occasion,  namely,  the  25th  of  March,  1875,  we  pre- 


258  RAMBLING    REMINISCENSES. 

sided  over  a  meeting  of  the  Workingmen's  Association,  at  their 
rooms  in  Pollet  street,  of  which  the  following  is  a  brief  report  as  it 
appeared  in  ths  Guernsey  Star  of  the  following  day  ; 

LECTURE   ON    ELECTRICITY — WORKING   MEN'S    ASSOCIATION — 
REMARKS    BY    COLONEL   J.  L.  PEYTON. 

A  lecture  on  electricity  was  delivered  last  Tuesday  evening  by 
Mr.  Power  at  the. Temperance  Hall  Pollet,  in  connexion  with  the 
working  Mens'  Association.  The  chair  was  occupied  by  Col.  Pey- 
ton, who  expressed  his  gratification  at  being  able  to  introduce  to 
the  audience,  as  lecturer,  a  gentleman  of  theoretical  knowledge 
and  practical  ex:perience  in  everything  having  reference  to  the  sci- 
ence of  electricity,  and  the  useful  purposes  to  which  it  has  been 
and  is  likely  to  be  applied — in  'a  word,  an  electrician  sons  ious  les 
rapports.  Many  of  those  presentvvere  doubtless  acquainted  with 
the  history  of  electricity ;  with  the  fict  that  it  was  known  to 
the  ancients,  though  their  knowledge  was  so  limited  that  it  served 
'no  useful  purpose,  but  rather  tended  to  increase  the  superstition  of 
those  primitive  times.  Thales,  of  Miletus,  knew  the  effect  pro 
duced  by  the  friction  of  amber  and  other  bodies,  and  the  fact  is 
mentioned  by  Theophrates  nearly  315  years  before  the  birth  of 
Christ.  Pliny  also  informs  us  of  the  knowledge  of  animal  electricity 
possessed  by  the  Romans — of  its  possession  not  only  by  the  Tor 
pedb,  but  by  otheV  fish,  and  also  by  the  human  body.  It  is  re- 
lated by  writers  of  old,  that  certain  ancient  philosophers,  when 
dressing  iind  undressing,  emitted  occasionally  certain  crackling 
sparks,  and  of  one  it  is  said  that  his  body  emitted  flames  without 
burning  his  clothes.  To  a  people  prone  to  place  igrlorant  reliance 
in  omens  and  prognostics,  to  believe  blindly  in  supernatural  ap- 
pearances, there  was  enough  in  such  phenomena  to  excite  their 
wonder  and  stimulate  their  belief  in  false  religions.  In  the  M^iddle 
Ages  some  scanty  knowledge  of  this  subtle  principle  was  possessed 
by  the  monks,  but  the  world  hardly  began  to  emerge  from  its 
general  ignorance  on  the  subject  until  the  day  of  Gilbert,  who  in 
1660,  by  some  new  discoveries,  added  much  to  our  stock  of  kn«)wl- 
edge  ;  and  afterwards  Boyle,  and  then  Newton,  who  first  construct- 
ed an  electric  machine  of  glass,  extended  this  knowledge.  After 
Newton,  followed  Hawshee.  Dufay,  Leyden,  VVestoil.  and  others, 
who  still  further  illustrated  the  subject  by  their  discoveries;  but  it 
was  reserved  for  the  American  philosopher,  his  fellow  countryman, 
Pranklin,  to  raise  electricity  to  the  dignity  of  a  science,  and  to 
connect  it  with  the  thunderbolt,  which  he  not  only  disarmed  ol  its 
terrors,  but  brought  down  and  converted  into  a  useful  element. 
Since  th^n  P'araday  and  others  have  made  juany  valuable  discov- 
eries aiyd  now  it  is  recognized  as  one  of  the  most  potent   and  val- 


RAMBLING     REiMIxMSCENCES.  259 

uable  acrencies  with  which  the  world  is  acquainted.  We  constantly 
hear  of  electro-chemistry,  electro  dynamics,  electro-magnetism, 
electro  type,  electro  plate,,  electro-telegraphy,  &c.,  words  that  de- 
note the  connection  of  the  sciences  and  substances  with  electricity. 
Of  electricity,  the  Colonel  asserted  that  it  might  be  generally  said, 
that  it  enters  the  sick  chamber  and  proves  more  efficacious  than  the 
warm  breath  of  Spring  in  restoring  health  to  the  prostrate  frame ; 
raising  up  from  the  bed  of  despair  the  benumbed  and  helpless  par- 
alytic, and  once  more  nerving  him  for  the  contests  of  the  world  ; 
that  by  its  aid  we  write  our  letters,  transmitting  them  in  an  instant 
across  the  widest  seas  ;  by  it  we  will  construct  the  simple  instru- 
ments of  peaceful  industry,  and  forge  the  thunderbolts  of  war, 
blow  up  the  fortresses,  sink  the  fleets  and  scatter  the  armies  of  our 
enemies.  "But,"  said  Colonel  Peyton,  "I  will  not  pursue  this  in- 
teresting subject  further,  tempting  as  it  is,  but  give  way  to  the  lec- 
turer, whose  particular  task  it  is  to-night,  and  who  is  far  better 
qualified  to  do  it  justice  in  all  its  bearings. 

"The  Chairman  sat  down  amidst  loud  applause  and  was  followed 
by  the  lecturer," 

PHYSICAL  FEATURES,  FORMER  STATE,  ETC. 

After  Ijiaving  said  so  much  of  the  manners  and  customs  of  the 
people,  it  will  not  be  amiss  to  bestow  a  few  further  remarks  on  the 
Island  they  inhabit,  its  soil,  cliinate.  scenery  and  its  former  con- 
dition, religion,  etc. 

The  Island  of  Guernsey  is  about  nine  miles  long  and  five  wide, 
contains  about  15,500  acres,  two  thirds  of  which  is  under  cultiva- 
tion, and  a  population  of  30,000  souls.  It  is  nearly  in  the  shape  of 
a  right  angle  triangle,  the  highest  point  being  300  feet  above  the 
level  of  the  sea.  The  Northern  parishes,  St.  Sampson  and  the  vale 
are  low  and  flat,  while  the  Southern  and  Eastern,  called  the  high 
parishes,  are  elevated  and  broken,  presenting  a  line  of  rugged 
cliffs  to  the  sea.  These  cliffs  bepin  in  St,  Peter-port,  extend  to 
the  sea  in  St.  Martin's,  and  thence  South  and  South  east  through 
the  Forest,  St.  Andrews,  St.  Peters-in  the  wood  and  Torteval. 
The  bays  are  very  beautiful,  so  much  so  that  it  is  not  unusual  to 
hear  gushing  maidens  style  them  heavenly.  The  sea  in  these  bays 
seems  literally  to  sleep  in  the  arms  of  the  shore.  The  most  ro- 
mantic and  admired  are  Fermam,  Munlin  Huet,  and  Petit  Bot 
bays,  all  of  which  are  defended  by  Martello  towers.  The  rallies 
abound  in  lovely  scenery,  and  the  soil  is  everywhere  singularly 
fertile.  The  water  lanes  are  a  feature  in  the  scenery.'  The  most  beau- 
tiful are  water  lane  in'  St.  Martin's  and  that  in  the  Couture  nearer 
l^iiwn.  The  farms  are  from  three  to  thirty  acres  in  size,  the  largest 
farm  in  the  Island,  the  Vaubelets,   having   30  acres,  and  the  fields 


26o  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 

do  not  average  more  than  an  acre.  They  are  divided  by  embank- 
ments of  earth  on  which  furze  grows  luxuriantly;  this  furz  is  used 
for  heating  the  ovens  for  baking.  There  are  few  gates,  but  the  en- 
trance to  a  field  is  guarded  by  a  bar  placed  across  from  two  stone 
pillars,  The  usual  crops  are  hay,  turnips,  carrots,  potatoes,  man- 
golds, wheat,  oats,  and  barley.  The  ground  is  plowed  by  a  large 
trench  plow  drawn  by  four  or  sometimes  six  horses  one  after  the 
other,  or  by  oxen — the  firmers  unite  in  this  work  each  leading  a 
horse.  Nobody,  however,  well  off  owns  six  horses,  often  not  even 
one.  Great  attention  is  paid  to  their  cows,  which  are,  as  we  have 
said,  larger  than  in  any  of  the  Islands,  and  are  evidently  the  blend- 
ing of  blood  in  early  days.  For  many  years  the  races  have  been 
kept  distinct,  and  the  improvement,  in  all  the  Island,  is  strictly 
within  the  lines  of  pure  breeding.  They  are  deep  milkers  and 
high  colored,  the  prevailing  color  being  a  rich  fawn,  with  much 
white  laid  on  in  large  patches.  When  they  dry  off  they  fatten  ea- 
sily and  make  excellent  beef  There  is  a  difference  of  opinion  as 
to  the  value  of  the  Guernsey  and  Jersey  cows.  It  is  an  open 
question  whether  the  cows  of  Jersey  or  Guernsey  are  the  best. 
While  the  Guernsey  cattle  are  the  largest  of  the  channel  Islands 
breed,  for  symmetry,  the  palm  is  awarded  to  those  of  Jersey.  The 
former  do  not  vary  so  much  in  color  as  the  latter,  but  they  are 
usually  red  and  white.  It  is  the  custom  to  tether  cattle  when  out. 
The  produce  of  the  Jersey  and  Guernsey  cows  average  the  same, 
for,  although  the  greatest  rivalry  on  this  point  exists  between  the 
farmers  of  both  Islands,  on  'investigation  it  will  be  found  that  the 
amounts  of  produce  correspond.  The  fattening  of  oxen  is  carried 
on  in  both  Islands  to  a  certain  extent,  and  it  may  be  computed 
that  one-sixth  of  the  supply  of  meat  is  fed  on  the  Island. 

The  waters  surrounding  Guernsey  abound  in  fish,  of  which  the 
most  prized  are  turbot,  brill,  John  Doray,  plaice,  sole,  lobsters, 
crabs,  ormersand  shrimps,  and  two  eels — the  one  small,  called  the 
sand  eel,  the  other  the  conger,  weighing  often  30  pounds.  The 
peasantry  esteem  the  conger  eel  highly,  and  salt  it  as  they  do 
the  sand  eel  for  winter  use,  and  as  it  sells  for  only  one  penny  a 
pound  it  is  a  boon  to  them.  The  cancer  crab,  sometimes  called 
the  Guernsey  crab,  is  one  of  the  most  delicate,  highly  flavored  and 
delicious  crustaceous  fish  ever  eaten.  It  is  in  great  demand  in 
England  and  France  and  fetches  a  high  price.  As  may  be  readily 
imagined,  the  people  draw  a  large  part  of  their  support  from  the  sea. 

THE   ISLAND   ONE   HUNDRED   YEARS   AGO. 

It  now  remains  for  us  to  gtve  a  slight  idea  of  the  changes  the 
Island  has  experienced  during  the  last  century.  Within  this  pe- 
riod it  has  emerged   from  a  very    rude  and  primitive    condition. 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  261 

In  1770  the  Governor  lived  in  a  mean,  comfortless  old  house — 
this  miserable  building  is  still  standing  on  Tower  hill,  and  is  now 
called  the  haunted  house,  and  is  tenanted  by  laborers  in  common 
with  bats  and  owls  ;  and  the  garrison  consisted  of  only  four  compa- 
nies of  invalids.  There  were  no  barracks  and  many  of  the  soldiers 
lived  in  the  town  and  as  there  were  no  drills  or  other  military 
duties  to  be  performed,  some  of  them  acted  as  porters,  by  way 
of  gaining  a  few  pennies.  The  Royal  Court  held  its  sittings  in  a 
store  room,  and  the  public  records  were  kept  in  the  cottage  of  the 
Greffier,  and  prisoners  were  confined  in  the  fort.  The  meat 
and  vegetable  markets  were  held  in  the  open  streets  on  Saturdays. 
There  was  only  one  teacher  in  Elizabeth  College,  and  the  theatre 
was  a  store  room  in  which  roving  actors  performed  about  once  in 
every  four  years.  The  shipping  of  the  Island  consisted  of  one 
ship,  four  brigs  and  a  few  sloops  and  cutters.  The  land  trans- 
portation was  done  by  oxen  and  ponies.  The  shops  were  small, 
low  and  dark,  and  scantily  supplied.  There  were  three  or  four 
small  breweries  and  some  small  factories  of  rope,  tobacco  and 
candles.  Barley  bread  was  used  six  days  in  the  week,  wheaten 
on  Sundays,  as  a  treat.  There  was  no  printing  press,  newspaper, 
or  druggist,  and  not  a  greenhouse.  Little  butcher's  meat  was 
eaten,  the  inhabitants  living  principally  on  fish,  conger  eels,  and 
vegetables.  There  was  no  post  office.  The  Sixtys  then  'resided 
in  High,  Cornet,  Smith  and  Pollet  streets — usually  dined  at  one 
o'clock,  tead  at  four  and  supped  at  nine  o'clock. 

F.  B.  Tupper's  history,  from  which  these  particulars  are  derived, 
goes  on  to  say,  these  early  hours  extended,  in  some  measure,  even 
to  company  ;  and  notwithstanding,  the  inhabitants  maintained  a 
constant  social  intercourse,  as  the  money  which  is  now  spent  in 
general  entertainments,  and  in  carriage  hire,  was  then  devoted  to 
more  frequent,  genuine,  and  rational  hospitality.  It  must  be  add- 
ed, however,  that  the  convivial  meetings  of  the  gentlemen,  who  had 
few  amusements,  or  intellectual  resources,  were  often  stained  by 
hard  drinking,  a  vice  prevalent  in  Great  Britain  and  Ireland  at 
that  time.  Unhappily,  also,  the  marriage  of  near  relations  was 
very  frequent,  although  that  of  first  cousins  was  pronounced  un- 
christian by  the  Colloquy  in  1591,  and  the  ill  effects  are  manifest 
to  this  day  in  many  families.  The  public  assemblies  were  held 
weekly,  in  a  large  room  at, the  bottom  of  the  Pollet ;  and  the  ladies 
were  not  the  less  joyows,  or  the  less  lovely,  because  they  walked 
to  parties  in  hoods  and  pattens  ;  indeed,  it  was  not  until  after  the 
peace  of  1815,  that  hack  carriages  were  introduced. 

The  language  of  all  classes  in  their  own  families  was,  with  few 
exceptions,  either  French  or  Guernsey  French,  chiefly  the  latter  ; 
but  the  upper  classes  could  spieak  Elnglish,  as  they  were  generally. 


262  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 

educated  in  En^^land,  where  these  Islands  were  then  as  little  known 
as  the  Orkneys  are  now. 

The  roads  throughout  the  Island  were  mere  lanes,  only  wide 
enough  for  a  cart,  but  the  greater  part,  had  a  narrow,  high  foot- 
path, and  when  two  carts  met,  one  had  to  go  into  a  field,  or  in  a 
recess  called  gcnsa^re,  to  allow  the  other  to  pass  ;  these  lanes  were, 
moreover,  extremely  rough,  and  often  flooded  in  Winter,  and 
very  muddy  during  the  rains  of  Summer. 

In  consequence,  the  inhabitants  of  the  country  had  so  little  in- 
tercourse with  each  other,  or  with  the  town,  that  their  parishes 
could  be  discovered  by  their  different  accents.  It  must  be  C9n- 
fessed,  however,  that  the  lanes  for^ned  a  most  agreeable  shady 
walk  for  pedestrians  in  Summer,  as  the  high  hedges  on  either  side 
were  planted  with  trees,  and  covered  with  wild  primroses,  violets 
and  harebells.  The  gentlemen  who  cultivated  their  own  small 
estates,  usually  dined  in  the  kitchen  with  their  farm  servants  who 
sat  below  the  salt,  as  did  the  retainers  of  the  lairds  in  Scotland  at 
that  time:  One  of  these  gentlemen,  of  ancient  family, — Mr.  Chas. 
Andros,  who  resided  at  Les  Piques  in  St.  Saviour's  Parish, — was 
the  Lieut-Bailiff,  a  man  of  good  property,  and  highly  respected. 
Carriages  were  almost  useless,  as  excursions  were  necessarily  made 
on  foot,  or  on  horseback,  and  the  few  which  existed  were  either 
open  gi|^s  or  close  vehicles  on  two  wheels,  substantially  construct- 
ed without  springs,  the  hors^  in  the  latter  being  always  led,  not 
driven.  It  was  about  this  time  that  Lieut.-Governor  Irving  intro- 
duced the  first  four  wheel  close  carriage,  with  a  pair  of  horses,  ever 
seen  in  the  island. 

Thus  in  1775,  (Guernsey  was  essentially  unimproved,  badly  cul- 
tivated, and  without  easy  means  of  communication,  either  exter- 
nally or  internally.  We  have  said  that  parties  met  at  an  early  liour, 
and  even  as  late  as  the  year  1796,  at  a  ball  and  supper  given  bv  the 
gentlemen  of  the  island,  at  the  Assembly  rooms  in  St.  Peters  port, 
to  Major-General  Small  and  the  officers  of  the  garrison,  on  the  i8th 
day  of  January,  to  celebrate  the  Queens  birth  day,  "the  compa- 
ny," was  requested,  "to  assemble  at  six  o'clock."  The  late  King 
William  IV,  while  Prince  William  Henry,  visited  Guernsey  twice, 
the  first  time  as  a  midshipman  in  the  Hebe  frPgate,  and  the  second 
in  command  of  the  Pegassus,  of  28  guns.  On  tiie  latter  occasion 
a  ball,  apparently  without  a  supper,  to  prepare  which  there  prob- 
abl}'  was  not  time,  was  given  to  him  by  the  Guernsey  gentlemen, 
on  the  7th  of  June.  1786,  the  entire  cost  for  nearly  two  hundred 
persons  present  being  only  ^36.4  58  or  14s.  6d.  per  head  for  the 
50  gentlemen  who  subscribed,  as  we  learn  by  a  copy  of  the  ac- 
c  ount :  twenty-five  years  later,  balls  and  suppers  given  to  the  naval 
uid  militiiry  officers  cost  about  ;£5oo,  so  great  was  the  sad  change 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCKS.  263 

effected  in  a  few  years  by  a  large  tjarrison  and  squadron,  and  a 
greater  intercourse  with  stningers. 

In  reviewing  the  state  of  Guernsey,  just  100  years  ago,  we  must 
not  forget  that  both  England  and  France,  the  pioneers  of  Euro- 
pean civilization,  were  then  very  far  behind  what  they  now  are  in 
roads,  buildings,  equipages,  literary  gratifications,  and  other  com- 
forts and  elegancies  of  life.  The  steam  engine  has  since  given  an 
impetus  to  every  species  of  improvement,  which  might  otherwise 
have  lain  dormant  for  another  century.  England  was  covered  with 
almost  Egyptian  darkness  The  state  of  the  established  church 
and  the  conduct  of  most  of  its  bishops  and  ministers  would  now 
be  considered  lamentable.  Hii^hwaymen  invested  the  public  roads 
and  education  \vas  so  little  diffused  that  the  lower  orders  were  de- 
plorably ignorant  and  brutal.  y\ll  these  are  notorious  facts.  One 
of  our  informants  remembered,  when  he  was  at  school  at  South- 
ampton, in  1775,  that  the  stage  coaches,  of  which  there  were  only 
two,  set  out  thence  for  London  at  four  o'clock,  a.  m  ,  and  reached 
their  destination  at  nine  o'clock,  p.  m.  Even  more  than  thirty 
years  afterwards,  the  coaches  were  thirteen  or  fourteen  hours  per- 
forming the  same  distance.  Now  the  journey  is  performed  in  less 
than  three  hours  by  rail.  The  mode  of  living  in  Scotland  at  the 
same  period  was  very  similar  and  by  way  of  soothing  the  minds 
of  his  Guernsey  readers  at  the  truthful  picture  he  drew  of  them 
and  their  antecedents,  Mr.  Tupper  quotes  these  lines  from  Cham- 
ber'sjournal :  "The  accommodations  possessed  by  families  of  good 
figure,  in  Scotland,  were  generally  limited  to  three  or  four  rooms, 
not  more  than  one  of  which  would  be  unfurnished  with  a  bed.  Of 
the  middle  ranks,  most  lived  in  bed  rooms.  Arrangements,  now 
deemed  indispensable,  were  unknown  "  Mr.  Tupper,  who  was  a 
perfectly  veracious  man,  did  not  intend  that  the  truth  should  be  dis- 
guised because  it  was  not  palatable  to  some  of  his  countrymen,  and 
proceeds  to  say  that  in  1804,  a  gentleman  of  an  ancient  Guerrisey 
family  and  a  Jural,  sat  in  his  parlor,  which  had  a  dirt  f^oor  and 
little  furniture.  He  was,  says  he.  the  second  richest  man  in  the 
island,  from  which  it  is  quite  evident  that  the  first  in  wealth  was 
no  Croesus.  The  Guersey  historian  goes  on  to  say  that  three  of 
his  sons  became  general  officers,  the  fourth  a  Jurat,  the  fifth  the 
Dean  of  Guernsey  and  the  sixth,  the  Receiver-General,  or  tax 
gatherer  of  the  island. while  one  of  the  daughters  married  a  distin- 
guished Major- General  and  was  the  mother  of  a  baronet.  (See 
Tupper's  history  of  Guernsey,  p.  404.) 

Mr.  Tupper  was  a  pronounced  democrat  in  his  political  opinions, 
which  he  is  said  to  have  imbibed  during  his  long  residence  in 
North  America,  and  cultivated  a  certain  republican  simplicity  in 
his  manners  and  habits.    In  the  above  account  of  the  Jurat  and  his 


264  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

descendants,  it  crops  out,  however,  unintentionally,  that  there  was 
nevertheless  in  Mr.  Tupper  the  usual  English  latent  love  of  a  lord  ; 
since  in  his  opinion  the  crowning  sucess  of  the  floorless  tenant's 
family  was  his  daughter's  bearing  a  son  who  became  a  baronet,  or 
a  little  Baron. 

In  a  historical  point  it  is  not  necessary  to  add  to  what  we  have 
said,  more  than  that  the  Channel  Island  group  of  which  Guernsey 
is  the  most  important,  with  the  single  exception  of  jersey,  are  the 
only  remains  of  all  the  former  Norman  possessions  of  England,  and 
these  islands  have  followed  the  fortunes  of  England  in  all  changes 
of  religion  and  government.  Their  transfer  from  the  Bishop  of 
Coutance  to  the  diocese  of  Winchester  was  effected  only  in  A.  D. 
1500  by  a  bull  of  Pope  Alexander  VI.  long  after  England  had 
ceased  to  hold  any  part  of  Continental  France. 

Long  as  the  island  has  been  known  it  can  boast  of  few  antiquities. 
Such  as  exist  are  of  Druidical  and  Celtic  origin.  The  ruins  of 
Vale  Castle  are  the  most  interesting  monuments  of  the  more  re- 
cent past.  Mr.  Lukis  has  a  private  museum  containing  many  ar- 
chaeological and  other  curiosities  taken  from  the  Cromlechs  of  the 
islands— in  it  there  is  much  unburnt  pottery,  many  stone  weapons 
taken  from  excavations,  where  there  were  found  many  human 
bones,  etc. 

The  climate  is  mild,  equable  and  salubrious — the  mean  temper- 
ature in  summer  being  59°  and  of  winter  43°  Far.  or  about  the  cli- 
mate of  Nubia. 

Guernsey  is  fairly  well  watered  with  small  springs  and  little  rivu- 
lets which  find  their  way  through  the  valleys  to  the  sea.  The  soil  is 
carefully  cultivated  and  is  very  productive — the  yield  bemg  m- 
creased  by  the  application  annually  of  large  quantities  of  sea  weed, 
or  vraic  to  the  ground, the  fertilizing  properties  of  which  are  remark- 
able. Fruit  and.  vegetables  are  the  principal  crops,  though  some 
wheat  is  grown  and  a  considerable  part  of  the  land  is  reserved  jr 
pasture,  where  one  sees  the  Guernsey  variety,  of  what  is  known  in 
America  as  the  Alderney  cow,  or  more  recently  the  Jersey  cow. 
There  is  little  difference  between  the  cows  in  any  of  the  Channel 
islands  and  in  America  it  is  now  the  rule  to  class  them  all  as  Jer- 
seys. This  is  our  opinion,  though  some  persons  will  tell  you  that 
the  Guernsey  cows,  which  are  the  largest  in  the  Channel  Islands, are 
asdifferent  from  the  Jerseys  as  is  the  Ayrshire  from  the  Devon. 
There  is  also  a  fine  breed  ol  diminutive  horses  which  originally 
came  from  France.  They  are  strong  and  mettlesome.  Though 
small  they  are  well  formed  and  some  of  them  beautiful — there  are 
no  mules,  but  a  few  asses  and  some  goats.  There  is  no  timber  in 
the  island,  only  a  few  shade  trees  in  Cambridge  Park  and  round 
about  country  houses,  and  the  fuel  of  the  peasants  is  gorse,  that  of 


RAMBLING     REMINISCRNSES.  265 

the  wealthy  classes  coals  Iprought  from  Newcastle  and  Wales.  The 
grape  only  comes  to  perfection  under  glass  and  no  wine  and  little 
cider  is  made,  though  the  apple  grows  well  but  not  in  sufficient 
quantities  to  be  manufactured  into  cider.  The  pears  are  extreme- 
ly good,  especially  the  Chaumontel,  which  is  peculiar  to  the  Island. 
There  are  no  manufactories  of  iron,  cioth,  paper,  or  other  articles 
with  the  exception  of  a  small  factory  in  the  Pollet  of  candies,  jams 
and  sweet  meats,  and  in  the  country  a  few  mills  for  grinding  corn. 

RELIGION,  PAST  AND    PRESENT,  ETC. 

The  people  are  pronounced  protestants  and  great  respect  is 
paid  to  religion  by  all  classes.  Many  of  them  are  enthusiastic 
christians  and  illustrate  in  their  lives  and  conduct,  that  human  soci- 
eties do  not  contain  the  entire  man:  that  there  remains  in  him  the 
noblest  part  of  himself- those  lofty  faculties  by  which  he  soars  to 
God.  to  a  future  life,  to  unknown  blisses  in  an  invisible  world. 
These  are  his  religious  convictions,  that  true  grandeur  of  man, 
the  consolation  and  charm  of  weakness  and  misfortune,  the  invio- 
lable refuge  against  the  tyrannies  of  this  world. 

The  island  is  divided  into  twelve  parishes  with  a  Rector  for 
each,  several  curates  for  the  chapels  of  ease  ;  a  handsome  Cath- 
olic Church  and  a  number  of  churches  for  the  various  sects  who 
are  dissenters,  or  non  conformists.*  The  church  of  the  town 
parish  is  wt-11  worth  a  visit.  It  is  very  old,  ornamented  with 
many  fine  tablets  and  monuments,  and  is  altogether  the  finest 
ecclesiastical  building  in  the  Channel  Islands.  The  oldest  church 
building,  now  in  ruins,  is  the  Chapel  of  St.  .Xpolline. 

As  far  back  as  1603-20  there  w^as  much  dissent  in  the  Channel 
island  ercnip  and  to  counteract  it  James  I  appointed  a  strong 
churchman,  Sir  John  Peyton.  Governor  of  jersey.  The  following 
is  the  account  of  it  in  Tupper's  History  of  Guernsey,  pp.  195  196. 

"The  circumstances  which  led  to  tiie  appointment  of  Sir  John 
Peyton  to  the  Governorship  of  Jersey,  are  not  without  interest  as 
throwing  lic^ht  upon  the  religious  condition  of  both  Jersey  and 
Guernsey  at  this  period,  and  may  be  briefly  and  not  inappropri- 
ately referred  to  at  this  point.  On  the  accession  of  James  I.,  the 
Cljurch  in  Gm-rnsey  and  Jersey  was  in  a  distracted  condition,  the 
principles  of  Calvin,  having  to  a  considerable  extent  taken  root 
in  both  Islands.  As  early  as  1555  Calvin  had  declared,  in  his 
epistle  to  the  English  Church  in  Frankfort,  that  he  had  observed 
in  the  'public    Liturgy    many    tolerable  vanities,  the  relicts  of  the 

*A  dissenter  is  one  who  differs  in  opinion  and  separates  from   the   service  of 

the  Church  of  Enijjland.     'I  he   non- conformist    is  one  who  does    i.ot    difier  in 

opinion  on  theological  points,  but  refuses  to  conform  to  the  rites  and   modes  of 
\\orship  of  the  established  church. 


(67) 


266  RAMBLING    REMINISCENSES. 

filth  of  Popery,  and  there  was  not  in  it  such  piety  as  was  expect- 
ed.' These  views  of  the  eminent  reformer  and  founder  of  the 
Calvinistic  sect,  were  adopted  by  numerous  inhabitants  of  Guern- 
sey and  Jersey,  particularly  among  the  lower  orders.  On  Sundays 
there  was  a  slim  attendance  at  the  Parish  Churches,  'a  beggarly 
account  of  empty  boxes,'  in  the  way  of  empty  pews— and  even 
those  who  were  regularly  at  divine  worship,  from  motives  of 
worldly  policy,  lauded  the  greatness  of  Calvin's  character,  while 
studiously  avoiding  any  open  declaration  of  adherence  to  the  relig- 
ious creed  promulgated  by  him.  All  this  was  extremely  distaste- 
ful to  the  orderly  and  orthordox  mind  of  the  new  King,  for  while 
James  had  lived  among  the  Scotch  Presbyterians,  he  was  not  of 
them.  This  truth  soon  became  painfully  apparent  to  the  Puri- 
tans, who  had,  anterior  to  the  death  of  Elizabeth,  entertained  san 
guine  hopes  of  aid  and  comfort  from  him.  These  expectations 
were  now  dashed,  and  they  had  another  illustration  of  the  wisdom 
of  the  oft  quoted  biblical  aphorism  :  'Place  not  your  trust  in 
Princes.'  The  King  evinced  a  determined  purpose  to  reinstate 
the  bishops  in  their  ancient  power  and  place,  and  to  establish  in 
all  the  reformed  Churches,  unity  of  religion  and  uniformity  of  de 
votion.  With.this  view,  when  Raleigh  was  attainted  of  treason, 
his  Majesty  appointed  Sir  John  Peyton,  of  Doddington.  Co.  Cam- 
bridge, Governor  of  Jersey,  to  whom  he  entrusted  the  task  of 
bringing  back  the  straying  Jerseymen  to  the  fold  of  the  Church 
of  England.  King  James  could  scarcely  have  found  one  more 
peculiarly  fitted  for  the  responsible  duty  entrusted  to  his  diplo- 
macy than  Sir  John  Peyton.  Sir  John  had  been  previously  Lieut 
enant-Governor  of  the  Tower  and  a  member  of  the  Privy  Council 
of  Elizabeth.  He  was  conspicuous  at  once  for  the  dignity  of  his 
birth  and  the  vigour  of  his  intellect;  for  the  extent  of  his  learning 
and  the  orthordoxy  of  his  religious  opinions,  and  was,  says  le 
Quesne,  'A  man  of  great  spirit  and  determination.'  He  was.  in 
the  language  of  an  old  writer,  'Educated  in  the  politest  manner 
of  the  age  he  lived  in,  by  serving  in  the  wars  of  Flanders  under 
the  most  able  and  experienced  soldiers  and  politicians  of  that  time.' 
Amidst  the  sunshine  of  the  courts  of  Elizabeth  and  James  I,  and 
the  affluence  of  a  large  fortune,  his  conduct  was  so  regular  and 
temperate,  that  his  life  was  prolonged  to  the  age  of  ninety  nine 
years  in  so  much  health  and  vigor  that  he  rode  on  horse  back 
hunting  three  or  four  days  before  his  death.  Heylin  thus  relates 
the  downfall  of  Presbyterianism  in  Jersey  under  the  administra 
tion  of  Sir  John  Peyton.  The  rector  of  St.  John  Parish  being 
dead,  the  Colloquy  appointed  'one  Brown'  (so  called  by  Heylin), 
to  succeed  him.  and  carried  their  point,  although  the  Governor — 
who  by  his  patent  held  the  presentation  of  all  the  livings  in  Jersey, 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  267 

deanery  excepted — protested  against  the  nomination.  Soon  after 
wards,  the  Governor,  who  was  well  inclined  to  further  the  things 
wished,  and  Marret,  the  proctcreur  du  roi,  forwarded  several  com- 
plaints to  the  Council  against  the  Colloquy,  declaring  that  that 
body  had  usurped  the  patronage  of  all  the  benefices  in  the  island, 
and  praying  the  King  to  grant  them  such  a  form  of  discipline  and 
church  government  as  would  prevent  the  repetition  of  similar 
abuses.  These  complaints  were  referred  to  the  two  royal  cum- 
missioners  just  named,  Gardner  and  Hussey,  when  the  clergy 
contended  that  their  right  of  appointment  to  the  Ministry,  and 
their  exercises  of  ecclesiastical  jurisdiction,  had  been  confirmed 
to  them  by  his  Majesty.  While  the  questions  at  issue  were  pend- 
ing, disputes  occurred  between  the  clergy  and  the  laity;  and  the 
Royal  Court  annulled  the  sentences  pronounced  by  the  consistory, 
which  was  moreover  accused  of  holding  secret  and  treasonable 
meetings.  The  parish  of  St.  Peter  becoming  void,  Sir  John  Pey- 
ton presented  it  in  1613,  to  a  clergyman  named  Messervey,  who 
had  resided  at  Oxford,  and  was  patronized  by  the  Bishop  of  that 
See.  The  colloquy  refused  his  admission,  chiefly  onaccount  of  his 
having  been  ordained  by  that  prelate,  as  to  accept  Messervey 
seemed  to  them  almost  an  acknowledgment  of  episcopacy.  After 
considerable  trouble  growing  out  of  these  matters,  Jersey  was 
brought  under  the  polity  and  ritual  of  the  Church  of  England,  and 
forty  years  later  Guernsey." 

At  the  period  of  our  second  visit  to  the  island  the  very  Rev.  J. 
Guille  was  dean  and  rector  of  St.  Peter-port.  He  was  a  good 
preacher,  pastor  and  man.  The  more  distinguished  of  the  rectors 
were  Rev.  Richard  J.  Ozanne,  a  most  kind,  sympathetic  and  hos- 
pitable man  ;  Rev.  C.  D.  P.  Robinson,  of  St.  Martin's,  and  Rev. 
J.  Cieraud,  of  St.  Saviours.  These  three  were  very  strong  men  able 
theolog^ians.  eloquent  preachers,  and  men  of  true  piety.  The 
remaining  nine  Rectors  were  hardly  above  mediocrity  in  talents  or 
acquirements,  but  like  their  more  distinguished  colleagues,  were 
diligent  in  the  performance  of  their  duties,  seizing  the  opportuni- 
ties which  their  situation  affords  to  noble  minds  and  pure  hearts  for 
the  exercise  of  active  virtue.  By  their  pastoral  visits  to  all,  espe- 
cially to  the  lowly  cottagers,  they  exerted  their  greatest  powers, 
guiding  the  mother's  hand  in  rearing  her  children  and  teaching 
them  the  important  lessons  of  religious  education  and  domestic 
economy,  awakening  by  kind  praise  the  ambition  of  the  young, 
and  soothing  with  lenient  hand  the  sorrows  of  the  old.  In  such 
occupations  they  exalt  the  character  of  their  calling  and  extend 
its  benefits,  shedding  upon  the  poor  blessings  which  mitigate 
their  wants  and  proverty,  teaching  them  that  in  religion  they  can 
truly  find  the    compensation    of  all  their    difficulties    and    trials. 


268  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

They  thus  made  themselves  fathers  of  the  people,  and  while  em- 
ploying their  benevolence  in  guiding  them  in  peace  through 
things  temporal,  with  higher  christian  benevolence  guiding  them 
in  hope  to  things  eternal.  They  thus  made  up  for  want  of  bril- 
liant intellectual  parts  and  other  deficiencies,  and  if  not  all  that 
could  be  wished,  were  at  least  acceptable  to  their  flocks. 

The  reader  will  find  in  appendix  C.  the  names  of  all  Guernsey- 
men  who  have  been  prominent  in  literature  and  in  the  public  service 
from  1600  to  the  present  day. 

During  our  repeated  visits  and  long  sojourns    in    Guernsey    we 
made  many  friends  whom  we  most  highly  valued  and    shall   ever 
cherish    in  affectionate  remembrance.     Among    them   was    Lady 
Carey,  the  amiable  and  accomplished  wife  of  Sir  Stkflford    Carey, 
and  a  relative  of  the  poet  and  ecclesiastical    author,   Dr.  Jonathan 
Shipley,  bishop    of  St.   Asaph,  from  1769  to    his   death    in   1789. 
Lady  Carey  had  in  her  possession  twenty  letters  in  the    hand  wri- 
ting ot  Dr.  Benjamin  Franklin,  and  one  from  his  nephew,  Jonathan 
Williams,    which    she  derived  from  an  aunt  in   whom   they    were 
given  at  Dr.  Shipley's  death,  and  which  she  placed  in  our  hands  to 
be  disposed  of  as  we  saw  fit.     Unwilling  to  retain  the  originals  we 
had  them  carefully  copied  and  now  give  them,  after  a  quarter  ot  a 
century,  to  the  American  public,  who  have  always   manifested    an 
extraordinary  interest  in  everything  relating  to  the  wonderful  man 
by  whom  they  were   written — a   man  whose    whole    conduct    and 
writings,    indeed,    present  the  somewhat  singular    union   of  great 
genius  united  to  practical    good    sense,   and    ol  singular    worldl' 
shrewdness,   with   the  loftiest  integrity    of  principle.     No    honoi 
could  make  him  forget   or  deviate  from  the  principles  with    which 
he  started  life.      Remembering  his  own  humble  origin  and   subse 
quent  rise,  he  rightly  considered  e.very  man  as  originally  equal  as 
regarded  real  intrinsic  worth,  and  equally  by  precept  and  example 
contributed  more  than  any  one  whatever,  to  breaking  down    tho> 
invidious  bars  to  eminence  and  success  in  life,  uhich   the   convei. 
tional  habits  and  artificial  feelmgs  of  society  had  heretofore    intei 
posed  to  the  elevation  of  those  unblessed   by    birth    and    fortune 
(For  these  letters  see  appendix  B.) 

To  Guernsey,  the  so  called  England  of  the  channel  Islands,  wl 
must  now  say  farewell,  and  with  no  small  regret.     We  love  her  anti 
her  people,  and  love  to  recall  the  happy  days  spent  on  her  shores 
No  American  should  fail  to  visit  "sweet  little  Guernsey."  Itsclimati 
its  scenery,  its  history,  its  inhabitants,  its  manners  and  customs,  it 
ancient  laws  and  institutions,  its  antiquities,  its  Druidical  and  Celti 
remains,    its  monuments,  its    language,    its   learning  and   culture, 
combine  to  make  it  for  the  Western  traveler  one  of  the   most   in- 
teresting spots  in  the  old  world. 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  269 


APPENDICES. 


APPENDIX  A. 

TREES. 

LINES   BY  GEORGES    METEVIER. 
Suggested  by  reading  "Over  the  Alleghanies,"  &c.,  by  J.  L.  Peyton. 

Look  at  the  sycamores  of  Blannerhasset, 

At  their  Titanic  trunk,  their  stretch'd  white  arms, 

As,  honour' d  friend,  John  Lewis  Peyton,  has  it, 
A  scribe  whose  ev'ry  line  displays  rare  charms  I 

Still,  how  forget  the  tree  on  whose  huge  limbs. 

Tost  in  autumnal  gales,  unseen,  alone, 
A  boy  once  caroll'd  warm  faith's  artless  hymns, 

Lull'd  by  the  distant  wave's  incessant   moan  ? 

Long  ere  the  houseless  myriad,  unrepell'd. 
Found    here  a  refuge  and  o'erflow'd  the  land. 

High  and  low.  rich  and  poor,  had  firmly  held 
^4  people's  old  hereditary  band. 

\Ve  know  each  other,  loyal,  frank  aihd  true, 

Norman,  or  Angevine,   or  Aquitanian, 
And  grey  beards  laugh  at  Cockneyland's  mad  crew, 

The  Radical,  the   Chartist,  and  the  Fenian, 

But  what  am  I  to  them  or  they  to  me  V 

Nothing  ;  and  this  is  all  I  wish  to  say. 
He  who  hews  down  God's  image,  our  old  tree. 

Is  God's  flint-hearted  foe,  think  what    he  may. 

A  name,  a  legend,  record  of  iht  past, 

Marks,  here  and  there,  some  giant  undefiled. 

But  with'ring  infidelity's  cold  blast 
Annihilates  the  seraph  and  the  child. 

The   child  !   Such  was  Maeonides,  who  won 
Truth's  leafy  diadem,  though  blind  and  poor, 

Such  was  that  meek  "Divine,"  the  only  one 
Who  sits  in  his  Lord's  bosom  evermore. 


/AC^ 


270  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 

And  if  a  truant  in  our  elm's  vast  womb* 

Oftshelter'd  innocence,  why  should  he  not, 
Joyous,  near  the  green  threshold  of  his  tomb, 

Remember,  as  he  prays,  that  holy  spot  ? 

Oak,  ash,  pine,  hawthorn,  kindly  lent  a  name 

To  worthy  fathers  whom  the  vulgar  scorn, 
Each  homestead's  hearth  wants  its  primaeval  flame  ; 

Where  is  eve's  glory,  hope's  fond  Angel,  morn  ? 

AOSDANA. 
*  "L'Orme  du  bas  du  Belle." 

Concerning  this  venerable  elm.  a  volume  of  delicious  reminiscences,  even  at 
this  very  late. hour,  might  be  said  or  sung.  Sciolism  would,  peradventure,  laugh 
at  them.  Did  not,  however,  one  of  our  early  masters,  a  philosopher  and  a  healer 
of  souls  as  well  as  of  bodies,  warn  pretenders  who  have  neither  traveled  through 
the  world  of  words  nor  through  the  world  of  facts,  that  "Nil  arrogantius  gram- 
matico  est," — 'c'est  une  bete  frottee  d'esprit." 

Let  us  therefore  modestly  reproduce  the  article  "belle,"  from  a  Glossary 
printed  at  Jena,  six  years  ago,  an  elaborate  work  of  which  the  compiler,  still  a 
French  scholar,  never  saw  a  single  proof: — 

"Belle,  s.m.     Cour  interieure  attenant  aux  batiments." 

"Norm.  bel.  besle.  boil,  V.  fr.  boille,  pour  cour.  jardin." 

"L'origine  norse  de  ce  termeso  demontre  par  un  article  des  Leges  Scanioe, 
IV.,  L" 

"Toute  la  ville  se  divise  en  portions  egales  (partiones)  qu'on  appele  Boel 
dans  la  langue  maternelle  " 

*'I1  y  a  encore  a  Vologne  une  petite  place  qui  se  nomme  le  Bel-Pinaud  :  la 
place  quietait  au  milieu  du  chateau  de  Caen  etait  aussi  nommee  le  Besle." 
Dumeril.  p  39.     Voir  le  reste,  p.  59  du  Gloss. 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  27 1 


APPENDIX  B. 

[Dr-  Franklin  to  the  Lord  Bishop  of  St.  Asaph.] 

London,  June  24th,  177 1. 

My  Lord  : — I  got  home  in  good  time  and  well.  But  on  pe- 
rusing the  letters  that  were  come  for  me  during  my  absence,  and 
considering  the  business  they  require  of  me,  I  find  it  not  conveni- 
ent to  return  so  soon  as  I  had  intended.  I  regret  my  having  been 
obliged  to  leave  the  pleasing  society  of  your  L's  and  family, 
and  that  most  agreeable  retirement  good  Mrs.  Shipley  put  me  so 
kindly  in  possession  of  I  now  breath  with  reluctance  the  smoke 
of  London,  when  I  think  of  the  sweet  air  of  Twylord :  And 
by  the  time  your  races  are  over,  or  about  the  middle  of  next 
month  (if  it  should  then  not  be  unsuitable  to  your  engagements  or 
other  purposes)  I  promise  myself  the  happiness  of  spending  anoth- 
er week  or  two  where  I  so  pleasantly  spent  the  last. 

I  have  taken  the  liberty  of  sending  by  the  Southampton  stage, 
directed  to  your  Lordship  a  parcel  containing  one  of  my  books 
for  Miss  Georgiana,  which  I  hope  she  will  be  good  enough  to  ac- 
cept, as  a  small  mark  of  my  regard  for  her  philosophic  genius. 
And  a  specimen  of  the  American  dry'd  apples  for  Mrs.  Shipley, 
that  she  may  judge  whether  it  will  be  worth  while  to  try  the  prac- 
tice. I  should  imagine  that  the  sweet  Summer  apples  which  can- 
not otherwise  be  kept  until  Winter,  are  best  to  be  thus  preserved. 
I  doubt  some  dust  may  have  got  among  these,  as  I  found  the  cask 
uncovered  ;  therefore  it  will  not  perhaps  be  amiss  to  rinse  them  a 
minute  or  two  in  warm  water,  and  dry  them  quick  in  a  napkin. 

With  the  greatest  esteem  and  respect  and  many  thanks  for  your 
and  Mrs.  Shipley's  abundant  civilities  I  am,  my  Lord,  Your  Lord- 
ship's obliged  and  most  obedient  humble  servant. 

B.  Franklin. 

P.  S.  The  parcel  is  directed  to  be  left  at  the  Turnpike  next  be- 
vond  Winchester. 


[Doctor  Franklin  to  Mrs.  Shipley,  wife  of  the  Bishop  of  St.  Asaph.] 

London,  Aug.  12,  1771. 
Dear  Madam  : — This  is  just  to   let  you  know  that  we   arriv'd 
safe  and  well  in  Marlborough  street,  about  six,  where    I    deliver'd 
up  my  charge  :  — 


272  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

The  above  seems  too  short  for  a  letter  ;  so  I  will  lengthen  it  by  a 
little  account  of  our  journey.  The  first  stage  we  were  rather  pen- 
sive. I  try'd  several  topics  of  conversation,  but  none  of  them 
would  hold.  But  after  breakfast  we  began  to  recover  spirits  and 
had  a  good  deal  of  chat.  Will  you  hear  some  of  it?  We  talked 
of  her  brother  and  she  wished  he  was  married.  And  don't  you 
wish  your  sisters  were  married  too  ?  Yes.  All  but  Emily ;  I 
would  not  have  her  married.  Why  ?  Because  I  can't  spare  her, 
I  can't  part  with  her .  The  rest  may  marry  as  soon  as  they  please, 
so  they  do  but  get  good  husbands.  We  then  took  upon  us  to 
consider  for  each  what  sort  of  husband  would  be  fitted  for  every 
one  of  them.     We  began  with  Georgiana.*     She  thought  a  coun- 


*Miss  Georgiana  Shipley  was  the  eldest  daughter  of  the  Bishop  of  St.  Asaph 
and  seems  to  have  been  Dr.  Franklin's  favorite  in  the  family.  It  waste  her  that 
he  addressed  the  following  letter  on  her  loss  of  her  American  Squirrel,  who,  es- 
caping from  his  cage,  was  killed  by  a  Shepherd  dog. 

London.  Sept.  26,  1772. 
Dear  Miss  : — I  lament  with  you  most  sincerely,  the  unfortunate  loss  of  poor 
Mungo.  Few  squirrels  were  better  accomplished  ;  for  he  had  had  a  good  edu- 
cation, had  travelled  far,  and  seen  much  of  the  world.  As  he  had  the  honor  of 
being,  for  his  virtues,  your  favorite,  he  should  not  go,  like  common  Skuggs, 
without  an  elegy  or  an  epitaph.  Let  us  give  him  one  in  the  monumental  stvle 
and  measure,  which  has  neither  prose  nor  verse,  is  perhaps  the  properest  for 
grief.  Since  to  use  common  language  would  look  as  if  we  were  not  affected, 
and  to  make  rhimes  would  seem  trifling  in  sorrow. 


Alas!   poor  Mungo! 
Happy  wert  thou  hadst  thou  known 

Thy  own  felicity. 

Remote  from  the  fierce  bal'd  eagle. 

Tyrant  of  thy  native   woods  ; 

Thou  hadst    naught  to  fear  from  his  piercing  talons, 

Nor  for  the  murdering  gun 

Of  the  thoughtless  sportsman. 

Safe  in  thy  wir'd   castle. 

Grimalkin   never  could  annoy  thee. 

Daily  wert  thou  fed  with  the  choicest  viands, 

By  the  fair  hand  of  an  indulgent   mistress  ; 

But  discontented. 

Thou  wouldst  have  more  freedon  : 

Too  soon,  alas  !  didst  thou  obtain  it  ; 

And.  wandering 

Thou  art  fallen  by  the  fangs  of  wanton,  cruel  Ranger! 

Learn  hence, 

Ye  who  blindly  seek  more  liberty. 

Whether  subjects,  sons,  squirrels,  or  daughters, 

That  apparant  restraint  may  be  real  protection  ; 

Yielding  peace  and  plenty 

With  security. 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  273 

try  gentleman,  that  lov'd  travelling  and  would  take  her  with  him, 
that  lov'd  books  and  would  hear  her  read  to  him  ;  I  added,  that 
had  a  good  estate  and  was  a  member  of  Parliament  and  lov'd  to 
see  an  experiment  now  and  then.  This  she  agreed  to  ;  so  we  set 
him  down  for  Georgiana  and  went  on  to  Betsy.  Betsy,  says  I, 
seems  of  a  sweet,  mild  temper,  and  if  we  should  give  her  a  coun- 
try Squire,  and  he  should  happen  to  be  of  a  rough,  passionate 
turn,  and  be  angry  now  and  then,  it  might  break  her  heart!  O 
none  of 'em  must  be  so;  for  then  they  would  not  be  good  hus- 
bands. To  make  sure  of  this  point,  however,  for  Betsy,  shall  we 
give  her  a  Bishop  ?  O  no  that  won't  do.  They  all  declare  against 
the  church,  and  against  the  army  ;  not  one  of  them  will  marry 
either  a  clergyman  or  an  officer  ;  that  they  are  resolved  upon. 
What  can  be  the  reason  for  that?  Why  you  know,  that  when  a 
clergyman  or  an  officer  dies,  the  Income  goes  with  'em  ;  and 
then  what  is  there  to  maintain  the  family  ?  there's  the  point. 
Then  suppose  we  give  her  a  good,  honest,  sensible  city  merchant 
who  will  love  her  dearly  and  is  very  rich  ?  I  don't  know  but  that 
may  do  We  proceeded  to  Emily,  her  dear  Emily,  I  was  afraid 
we  sliould  hardly  find  anything  good  enough  for  Emily ;  but  at 
last,  after  first  settling  that,  if  she  did  marry,  Kitty  was  to 
live  a  good-deal  with  her ;  we  agreed  that  as  Emily  was  very 
handsome  we  might  expect  an  Earl  for  her.  So  having  fix'd  her, 
as  I  thought,  a  Countess,  we  went  on  to  Anna  Maria.  She,  says 
Kitty,  should  have  a  rich  man  that  has  a  large  Family  and  a  great 
many  things  to  take  care  of;  for  she  is  very  good  at  managing, 
helps  my  Mama  very  much,  can  look  over  bills,  and  order  all  sorts 
of  family  business.  Very  well,  and  as  there  is  a  grace  and  dignity 
in  her  n:ianner  that  would  become  the  station,  what  do  you  think 
of  giving  her  a  Duke  ?  O  no  !  I'll  have  the  Duke  for  Emily. 
You  may  give  the  Earl  to  Anna  Maria  if  you  please :  But  Emily 
shall  have  the  Duke.  I  contested  this  matter  some  time  ;  but  at 
length  was  forced  to  give  up  the  point,  leave  Emily  in  possession 
of  the  Duke,  and  content  myself  with  the  Earl    for  Anna    Maria. 

You  see,  my  dear  Miss,  how  much  more  deoent  and  proper  this  broken  style 
is,  than  if  we  were  to  say,  by  way  of  an  epitaph, — 

Here  Skugg 
Lies  snug, 
As  a  bug 
In  a  rug,     . 
And  yet,  perhaps,  there  are  people  in  the  world  of  so  little  feeling  as  to  think 
this  would  be  a  good-enough  epitaph  for  poor  Mungo. 

If  you  wish  it,  I  shall  procure  another  to  succeed  him;   but  perhaps  you  will 
now  choose  some  other  amusement. 

Remember  me  affectionately  to  all  the  good  family,  and  believe  me  ever  your 
affectionate  friend,  B.  FRANKLIN. 


(69) 


274  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 

And  now  what  shall  we  do  for  Kitty  ?  We  have  forgot  her.  all 
this  time.  Well,  and  what  will  you  do  for  her?  I  suppose  that 
though  the  rest  have  resolved  against  the  army,  she  may  not  have 
made  so  rash  a  resolution.  Yes,  but  she  has  :  Unless  now,  an 
old  one,  an  old  general  that  has  done  fighting,  and  is  rich,  such  a 
one  as  general  Rupare  ;  I  like  him  a  good  deal ;  you  must  know 
that  I  like  an  old  man.  indeed  I  do  .  And  some  how  or  other  all 
the  old  men  take  to  me,  Jill  that  come  to  our  house  like  me  better 
than  my  other  sisters :  I  go  to  'em  and  ask  'em  how  they  do,  and 
they  like  it  mightily  ;  and  the  maids  take  notice  of  it,  and  say 
when  they  see  an  old  man  come,  there's  a  friend  of  yours  Miss 
Kitty.  But  then  as  you  like  an  old  General,  hadn't  you  better 
take  him  while  he's  a  young  officer,  and  let  him  grow  old  upon 
your  hands,  because  then,  you'il  like  him  better  and  better  every 
year  as  he  grows  older  and  older.  No,  that  won't  do.  He  must 
be  an  old  man  of  70  or  3o,  and  take  me  when  I  am  about  30.  And 
then  you  know  I  may  be  a  rich  young  widow. 

We  dined  at  Staines,  she  was  Mrs.  Shipley,  cut  up  the  chicken 
pretty  handily  (with  a  little  direction)  and  helped  me  in  a  very 
womanly  manner.  Now,  says  she.  when  I  commended  her.  'my 
father  never  likes  to  see  me  or  Georgiana  carve,  because  we  do 
it,  he  says,  so  badly  :  But  how  should  we  learn  if  we  never  try? 
We  drank  good  papa  and  mama's  health,  and  the  healths  of  the 
Dutchess,  the  Countess,  the  merchant's  lady,  the  country  gentle- 
man, and  our  Welsh  Brother.  This  brought  their  affairs  again 
under  consideration.  I  doubt,  says  she,  we  have  not  done  right 
for  Betsy.  I  don't  think  a  merchant  will  do  for  her.  She  is 
much  inclined  to  be  a  fine  gentlewoman  ;  and  is  indeed  already 
more  of  the  fine  gentlewoman,  I  think,  than  any  of  my  other  sis- 
ters ;  and  therefore  she  shall  be  a  true  Countess. 

Thus  we  chatted  on  and  she  was  very  entertaining  quite  to  town. 

I  have  now  made  my  letter  as  much  too  long  as  it  was  at  first 
too  short  The  Bishop  would  think  it  too  trifling,  therefore  don't 
show  it  to  him.  I  am  afraid  too  that  you  will  think  it  so  and  have 
a  good  mind  not  to  send  it.  Only  it  tells  you  Kitty  is  well  at 
school,  and  for  that  I  let  it  go.  My  love  to  the  whole  amiable 
family,  best  respects  to  the  Bishop  and  1000  thanks  for  all  your 
kindness,  and  for  the  happy  days  I  enjoyed  at  Twyford. 

With  the  greatest  esteem  and  respect  1  am  Madam,  Your  most' 
obed't  humble  servant. 

B.  Franklin. 


(Dr.  Franklin  to  the  Bishop  of  St.  Asaph  J 

London.  Aug.  15th.  1771. 
My  Dear  Lord.— Many  thanks  for  your  letters  to  the  Primate 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENSES.  275 

and  Mr.  Jackson,  which  I  shall  take  care  to  forward  if  I  shall 
happen  not  to  have  an  opportunity  of  delivering- them  personally. 

Your  repeated  kind  invitations  are  extremely  obliging.  The 
enjoyment  of  your  Lordship's  conversation,  good  Mrs.  Shipley's 
kind  care  of  me  sick  and  well,  and  the  ever  pleasing  countenances 
of  the  whole  amiable  family  towards  me,  make  me  always  very 
happy  when  I  am  with  you.  Hut  I  must  not  abuse  so  much  good- 
ness, by  engrossing  it.  You  have  many  other  friends,  and  I  ought 
to  be  contented  with  my  turn. 

I  own  that  I  do  flatter  myself  that  my  pamphlet  upon  colds 
may  be  of  some  use.  If  I  can  persuade  people  not  to  be  afraid  of 
their  real  friend  fresh  air^  and  dan  put  them  more  upon  their 
guard  against  those  insiduous  enemies,  full  living  and  indolence, 
I  imagine  they  may  be  somewhat  happier  and  more  healthy. 

You  guessed  rightly,  but  after  my  fellow  traveller  had  recover- 
ed her  spirits,  we  did  not  want  conversation.  The  story  of  the 
Noises  at  Hinton  she  did  introduce,  by  intimating  that  having  by 
accident  heard  a  part,  it  had  been  thought  proper  to  tell  her  the 
whole.  "I  do  not  believe  any  such  thing,  not  a  word  of  it ;  and  I 
wonder  that  so  sensible  a  woman  as  Mrs.  Rickets  can  be  in  the 
least  uneasy  about  it."  I  had  not  the  smallest  suspicion  of  any 
plot  to  draw  the  story  from  me  ;  and  this  declaration,  of  her  not 
at  all  believing  any  such  things,  was  very  proper  to  put  me  off 
my  guard,  and  induce  me  to  talk  freely  on  any  of  the  circumstan- 
ces ;  so  that  I  might  have  fallen  into  the  trap,  if  her  knowijig  the 
whole  already  had  not  made  me  think  it  useless  to  mention  any  of 
them.  I  assure  you  she  gave  me  no  kind  of  trouble  on  the  jour- 
ney, behaved  in  the  most  agreeable,  womanly  manner  all  the  way, 
and  was  very  interesting. 

I  propose  to  set  out  on  Tuesday  next  for  Ireland.  I  wish  all 
kinds  of  happiness  to  you  all,  being  with  the  sincerest  esteem  and 
veneration  for  your  Lurdship,  and  much  ajfeciion   (if  that  word  is 

*Dr.  Franklin  wrote  as  early  as  1768  to  Monsieur  Dubourg  on  the  free  use  of 
air,  as  follows  : 

"You  know  the  cold  bath  has  long  been  in  vogue  here  (London)  as  a  tonic; 
but  the  shock  of  the  cold  water  has  always  appeared  to  me.  generally  speaking, 
as  too  violent,  and  I  have  found  it  much  more  agreeable  to  my  constitution  to 
bathe  in  an  another  element.  I  mean  cold  air.  With  this  view,  I  rise  almost 
every  morning  and  sit  in  mv  chamber  without  any  clothes  whatever,  half  an 
hour  or  an  hour,  owing  to  the  season,  either  reading  or  writing.  This  practice 
is  not  in  the  least  painful,  but,  on  the  contrary,  agreeable  :  and  if  I  return  to 
bed  afterwards,  befoje  I  dress  myself,  as  sometimes  happens.  I  make  a  supple- 
ment to  my  night's  rest  of  one  or  two  hours  of  the  most  pleasant  sleep  that  can 
be  imagined  I  find  no  ill  consequences  whatever,  resulting  from  it,  and  that 
at  least  it  does  not  injure  my  health,  if  it  does  not  in  fact,  contribute  much  to  its 
preservation.     I  shall,  therefore,  call  it  for  the  future,  a  bracing  or  tonicbath. 


2^6  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 

permissible)  for  Mrs.  Shipley,  Your  most  obliged  humble  servant, 
Bishopof  St.  Asaph.  B.Franklin. 


[Same  to  same.] 

London,  Aug.  19th,  1771. 

My  Lord, — By  the  Southampton  coach  I  have  sent  your  Lord- 
ship the  Book  of  State  trials,  which  would  have  been  sent  sooner 
but  that  I  hoped  to  send  the  Northumberland  book  with  it.  I 
have  searched  and  enquired  among  my  friends  for  the  book  and 
cannot  find  it.  I  suppose  I  have  lent,  and  do  not  just  recollect  to 
whom. 

I  dined  on  Sunday  last  at  Sir  John  Pringle's  with  Messrs  Banks 
and  Solander,  and  learned  some  further  particulars.  The  people 
of  Otahitee  (George's  Island)  are  civilized  in  a  great  degree,  and 
live  under  a  regular  feudal  government,  a  supreme  Lord  or  King, 
Barons  holding  districts  under  him,  but  with  power  of  making  war 
on  each  other  ;  Farmholders  under  the  Barons  ;  and  an  order  of 
working  people,  servants  to  the  farmholders.  They  believe  in  a 
supreme  God  and  inferior  Gods,  all  spirits,  with  a  celestial  govern- 
ment similar  to  their  own.  They  have  some  ceremonies  of  Ado- 
ration, but  seldom  used.  They  erect  temples  for  their  gods;  but 
they  are  small  and  stuck  up  on  a  pole  in  the  fields,  partly  to  honor 
the  gods  and  partly  for  their  convenience  to  lodge  in  when  they 
happen  to  come  down  among  men  ;  a  little  temple  being,  they 
say,  as  commodious  for  a  spirit  as  a  large  one.  Their  morals  are 
very  imperfect,  as  thev  do  not  reckon  chastity  among  the  virtues, 
nor  theft  among  the  vices.  They  have  honors  and  distinctions 
belonging  to  different  ranks  but  these  are  paid  to  a  father  no  lon- 
ger when  he  has  a  son  born,  they  are  afterwards  paid  to  the  son  ; 
and  this  keeps  some  from  marrying  who  are  unwilling  to  lose 
their  rank,  and  occasions  others  to  kill  their  children  that  they 
may  resume  it.  They  had  no  idea  of  kissing  with  the  lips,  it  was 
quite  a  novelty  to  them,  though  they  liked  it  when  they  were 
taught  it.  Their  affectionate  and  respectful  salutation  is  bringing 
their  noses  near  each  other's  mouths  and  snuffiing  up  one  another's 
breath.  Their  account  of  the  creation  is,  that  the  great  spirit  first 
begot  the  waters,  then  he  begot  the  Earth  and  threw  it,  a  great 
mass,  it  into  the  waters  ;  then  not  liking  ;to  see  it  all  in  one  place, 
and  a  great  part  of  the  waters  without  any  of  it.  he  fastened  a  strong 
cord  to  it  and  drew  it  so  swiftly  through  the  waters  that  many  of 
the  loose  parts  broke  off  from  it  and  remain  in  the  sea,  being  the 
islands  they  are  acquainted  with.  They  believe  the  great  mass  is 
still  in  being  somewhere,  though  they  know  not  where,  and  they 
asked  our  people  if  they  did  not  come  from  it.  They  have  a  con 
siderable  knowledge  of  the  stars,  sail  by  them,  and  make  voyages 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  277 

of  three  months  westward  among  the  islands.  Notwithstanding  all 
the  advantages  our  people  could  show  we  had  from  our  arts,  &c., 
they  were  of  opinion  after  much  consideration  that  their  condition 
was  preferable  to  ours. 

The  inhabitants  of  New  Zealand  were  found  to  be  a  brave  and 
sensible  people,  and  seemed  to  have  a  fine  country.  The  inhabi- 
tants of  New  Holland,  seemed  to  our  people  a  stupid  race,  for 
they. would  accept  none  of  our  presents.  Whatever  we  gave 
them  they  would  look  at  a  while,  then  lay  it  down  and  walk 
away.  Finding  four  children  in  a  hut  on  one  part  of  the  coast, 
and  seeing  some  people  at  a  distance  who  were  shy  and  would  not 
be  spoken  with,  we  adorned  the  children  with  ribbons  and  beads 
and  left  with  them  a  number  of  little  trinkets  and  some  useful 
things;  then  retiring  to  a  distance,  gave  opportunity  to  the  people 
to  fetch  away  their  children,  supposing  the  gifts  might  conciliate 
them.  But  coming  afterwards  to  the  hut  we  found  all  we  had  left, 
the  finery  we  had  put  upon  the  children  among  the  rest.  We 
call  this  stupidity.  But  if  we  were  disposed  to  compliment  them, 
we  might  say,  Behold  a  nation  of  Philosophers !  such  as  him 
whom  we  celebrate  for  saying  as  he  went  through  a  Fair,  How 
many  (kings  ihey'e  are  in  the  world  that  I  dont  ivant. 

Please  to  present  my  best  respects  to  good  Mrs.  Shipley.  Her 
kind  letter  has  relieved  me  from  an  uneasiness  I  was  under  lest 
by  some  sottise  or  other  in  my  long  hasty  scrawl  I  might  have 
given  offense.  My  love  to  all  the  young  ladies  accompanies  the 
sincere  and  great  esteem  and  respect  with  which  I  am,  my  Lord, 
your  Lordship's  most  obedient  and  most  humble  servant. 

B.  Franklin. 

Our  journey  is  postponed  to  Saturday  next. 


[From  the  same  to  same. 

London.  Aug.  21.  1773. 

My  Dear  Lord. — Inclosed  I  send  a  Boston  newspaper  in 
which  the  sermon  is  advertised.  The  speaker  of  the  Assembly 
of  the  Massachusetts,  in  his  letter  to  me  says  ,'*The  Bishop's  sermon 
is  much  liked,  as  it  discovers  a  catholick  spirit,  and  sentiments 
very  favorable  with  regard  to  America."  Dr.  Chauncey  an  an- 
cient dissenting  Minister  of  Boston  writes,  "The  Bishop  of  St. 
Asaph's  sermon  I  got  reprinted  in  24  hours  after  it  came  to  hand. 
'Tis  universally  received  here  with  approbation  and  wonder,  and 
has  done  much  good.  It  sold  amazingly.  A  second  impression 
was  called  for  in  two  days." 

I  daily  expect  to  hear  more  of  it  from  the  other  colonies.  I 
hope  the  good  family  all  continue  well  and  happy. 

(70) 


278  RAMBLING    REMINISCENSES. 

With  sincere  esteem  and  affectionate  respect  I  am  ever  your 
Lordship's  most  obed't  humble  servant. 

Bishopof  St,  Asaph.  H.  Feanklin. 

[Same  to  same.] 

Craven  Street,  March  10,  1774. 

My  good  Lord  :  — In  page  26  and  Leg.  of  the  oldest  of  these 
pamphlets  and  page  64^of  Leg.  of  the  newest.,  your  Lordship  will 
find  the  subject  of  communication  with  settlements  on  the  Ohio 
pretty  fully  handled. 

The  rarity  of  goods  brought  from  distant  countries  makes  peo- 
ple willing  to  give  such  an  additional  price  for  them  as  more  than 
compensates  the  charge  of  carriage.  A  gentleman  assured  me 
that  not  long  since  being  at  a  Fair  in  Transylvania,  he  saw  there 
a  shop  full  of  English  Queen's  ware,  which  had  been  carried  up 
the  Rhine  and  down  the  Danube.  The  ware  is  bulk}',  of  low  value 
proportioned  to  its  bulk  and  hazardous  to  carry,  and  yet  the  price 
defrayed  the  expense  and  risque. 

I  send  also  another  pamphlet,  at  the  end  of  which,  page  143,'  is 
reprinted  a  little  piece  of  mine  on  the  differences  then  arising  be- 
tween the  countries. 

I  apprehend  that  one  view  of  the  intended  bill  may  be  the  dis- 
couraging of  emigration.  The  prospectors  may  suppose,  that  if 
titles  to  new  land  cannot  be  obtained  in  America,  people  will  not 
go  thither  to  obtain  lands.  They  will  however  find  themselves 
mistaken.  The  natives  of  America  are  those  who  settle  new 
lands,  removing  from  those  they  have  begun  to  cultivate  as  fast  as 
they  have  an  opportunity  of  selling  them  to  new  comers,  who  are 
not  so  fit  for  the  woods  as  themselves.  And  this  will  go  on  for 
people  will  confide  that  Government  can  never  be  so  unjust,  as  to 
turn  them  off,  and  indeed  it  will  never  be  done. 

But  suppose  such  an  act  could  be  executed,  what  would  be  the 
consequence?  The  American  gentlemen,  (not  at  present  in  favor 
here)  who  are  possessors  ot  large  tracts  of  land,  fit  for  settlement, 
would  then  have  the  whole  market  in  their  own  hands,  and  their 
estates  would  thereby  be  increased  in  value  beyond  imagination. 
Sir  Francis  Bernard  and  his  associates  (of  whom  I  have  tlie  honor 
to  be  one)  have  120,000  acres  in  Nova  Scotia  which  we  wish  to 
have  setded.  The  settlement  on  the  Ohio  is  against  us,  as  it 
draws  the  people  another  way.  Perhaps  he  may  move  the  meas- 
ure for  his  own  sake,  and  that  of  his  English  friends.  1  ought  not 
to  object  to  it,  if  I  thought  only  of  my  own  interest;  for  I  have 
declined  my  share  in  the  Ohio  purchase.  But  I  think  people 
should  be  left  at  liberty  to  go  where  they  can  be  happiest.  I  and 
my  son  have  also  some  other  considerable   tracts,  so   that   if  such 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  279 

an  act  should  pass,  Government  will  do  me  more  favour  than  they 
have  done  me  injury  by  taking  away  my  place. 

With  greatest  esteem  and  respect  I  am,  my  Lord,  your    Lord- 
ship's most  obedient  and  most  humble  Servant. 

B.   Franklin. 


[Same  to  same.] 
[This  letter  is  without  date,  but  is  supposed,  to  have  been  written 
by  Dr.  Franklin  during  the  autumn  of  1774,   and  before  the  next 
letter  dated  Sep.  28th,  1774.  J.  L.  P.] 

EXTRACT  FROM  KALM'S  TRAVELS  IN  AMERICA. 

"It  has  been  found  repeatedly  that  these  trees  (Peach  trees)  can 
"stand  the  frost  much  better  on  hills  than  in  the  vallies  ;  inasmuch 
"that  when  those  in  a  valley  were  killed  by  the  frost,  those  on  a 
"hill  were  not  hurt  at  all.  It  is  remarkable  that  in  cold  nights,  all 
"the  leaves  to  the  height  of  seven  or  even  of  ten  feet  from  the 
"ground  have  been  killed  by  the  frost,  and  all  the  top  remain-ed 
"unhurt.  Further,  it  is  observable  that  the  cold  nights  which  hap- 
"pen  in  Summer  never  do  any  hurt  to  the  high  grounds,  damag- 
"ing  only  the  low  and  moist  ones."     Vol.  11  page  83. 

Fhe  above  extract  shows  that  the  phenomenon  mentioned  by 
tny  dear  good  friend  is  not  uncommon  in  North  America.  I  re- 
member to  have  once  travelled  through  a  valley  there,  on  both 
sides  of  which  the  leaves  on  the  trees  were  killed  to  a  certain 
height,  the  line  of  the  blast  appearing  very  even  and  fevel  as  far  as 
the  eye  could  reach,  all  below  the  line  being  blasted,  and  all  above 
green.  I  think  I  have  heard  it  observed  here,  that  frost  in  a  dry 
night  does  not  hurt  so  much  as  when  the  leaves  have  been  wet. 
Fogs  sometimes  lie  on  low  grounds,  and  one  can  see  over  them 
from  the  side  of  a  hill.  Perhaps  a  frost  with  such  a  fog  may  affect 
the  trees  immersed  in  it  more  than  those  above  it.  In  a  hilly 
country,  too,  though  the  vallies  are  warmest  in  the  day  time,  while 
the  sun  shines,  from  the  many  reflections  of  his  rays;  yet,  as  soon 
as  he  is  set,  the  contrary  takes  place  ;  the  cooler  air  of  the  hills  set- 
tles into  the  vallies,  and  the  warmer  air  of  the  vallies  ascend  to  the 
hills.  This  I  have  frequently  observed  in  little  excursions  from 
Philadelphia  in  the  Sumnier  season.  Riding  out  in  the  day  I  have 
been  sweltered  in  the  vallies,  nothwithstanding  the  thinness  of  my 
dress,  and  refreshed  when  passing  over  the  hills.  Returning  in 
the  evening,  the  same  thinness  of  dress  rr.ade  a  sensible  of  a  chill- 
ing coolness  in  the  vallies,  while  the  air  on  the  hills  was  agreeably 
warm. 

Your  very  kind  invitation  to  Twyford,  with  the  strong  impres- 
sion I  have  from  experience  of  the  happiness  I  might  enjoy  there, 


28o  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

in  a  family  I  so  truely  love,  almost  staggers  my  resolution  of  visit- 
ing America  this  Summer.  But  I  grow  exceedingly  home-sick. 
I  long  to  see  my  own  family  once  more.  I  draw  towards  the  con-  - 
elusion  of  life  and  am  afraid  of  being  prevented  that  pleasure.  Besides 
I  feel  myself  become  of  no  consequence  here.  I  find  I  cannot  pre- 
vent nor  alter  measures  that  I  see  will  be  pernicious  to  us'all.  3ur 
there,  where  my  opinion  and  advice  is  a  little  more  regarded,  I 
imagine  I  may  still  be  of  some  use,  in  diminishing  or  retarding  the 
mischief  It  is  true,  my  country  pays  me  well  for  residing  here. 
But  I  think  a  mere  labourer,  though  paid  as  usual  for  a  day's 
work,  would  not  be  satisfied  to  turn  a  grindstone  all  day,  where 
nothing  was  to  be  ground. 

Please  to  present  my  respectful  compliments  to  good  Mrs.  Ship- 
ley, and  all  the  amiable  young  ladies,  with  your  valuable  son, 
who,  I  hear  by  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Jackson,  is  at  present  with  you.  I  had 
a  little  of  the  pleasure  of  their  company  before  they  set  out  for 
Spa. 

I  have  not  yet  heard  from  America  how  the  sermon  was  receiv- 
ed there.  But  expect  it  will  have  several  editions  in  different 
places  and  be  greatly  applauded,  as  indeed  it  is  here  among  all 
the  friends  of  Liberty  and  the  common  rights  of  mankind.  I 
think  even  the  New  Englanders  will  for  once  have  a  good  opinion 
of  a  Bishop. 

With  the  sincerest  esteem  and  most  affectionate  respect,  I  asn, 
my  Lord,  your   much  obliged  and  most  obedient  servant, 

B.  Franklin, 


[Same  to  same.] 

London,  Sept.  28,  1774. 

I  received  my  dear  friend's  letter  of  the  8th  post  and  should 
have  written  sooner  but  that  I  have  been  in  continual  expectation 
of  being  able  to  visit  you.  A  succession  of  thwarting  businesses  has 
prevented  my  giving  myself  that  pleasure  hitherto.  And  writing 
by  post  is  now  attended  with  such  inconvenience,  that  I  am  apt  to 
postpone  it. 

I  am  glad  the  conduct  of  my  countrymen  meets  your  approba- 
tion, who  are  so  good  a  judge  of  w'lat  is  right  and  prudent. 
I  think  I  can  answer  for  them  that  whatever  is  agreed  on  at  the 
Congress  will  be  executed  with  universal  resolution,  firmness  and 
perseverance.  There  may  be  a  few  personal  exceptions,  but  of 
little  moment.  Your  information  is  true  that  great  orders  for 
goods  have  been  sent  over  by  some  in  expectatiorwthat  a  yieuf  im- 
portation agreement  would  probably  take  place  ;  but  the  managers 
there  apprehending  that  the  merchants  were  not  all  to  be  relied  on, 
have  set  on  foot  a  new  consuviption  assessment,  among  the  country 


RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES.  28l 

people,  which  since  Gage's  absurd  proclamation  against  it  has 
made  great  progress;  and  this  has  occasioned  already  several 
counter  orders,  as  the  importation  can  answer  no  end  if  the  people 
will  not  buy.  I  suppose  you  must  have  heard  that  some  steps  are 
taken  to  form  a  coalition  if  possible  among  those  of  our  great  folks 
who  agree  in  disapproving  the  present  measures,  though  they 
have  not  had  a  good  understanding  on  other  accounts.  If  they 
can  unite,  they  will  have  greater  weight  in  endeavouring  to  un- 
horse the  present  wild  riders,  and  thereby  prevent  the  ruin  that 
seems  to  threaten  our  great  political  building  by  their  mad  man- 
agement. 

I  had  the  great  pleasure  of  hearing  in  all  companies  the  speech 
extolled  as  a  master  piece  of  eloquence  and  wisdom.  Great  num- 
bers of  them  have  been  printed  and  dispersed  over  the  nation  : 
And  I  think  one  may  see  already  its  beginning  effect.  The  abuse 
of  America  in  the  papers  is  of  late  much  diminished,  and  new  ad- 
vocates for  her  are  arising  daily.  I  send  you  inclosed  one  of  the 
smaller  edition.  The  publishers  who  have  put  their  names  to  it» 
have  as  yet  only  delivered  quantities  to  the  subscribers,  (who  dis- 
tribute them  gratis)  being  afraid  of  offending  Cadell  if  they  should 
advertise  it  and  sell  it  at  the  price  mentioned  ;  though  they  think 
they  could  sell  great  numbers  if  they  had  the  author's  leave. 

I  had  the  honor  of  a  long  conversation  lately  with  Lord  Chat- 
ham, whose  sentiments  upon  American  affairs,  I  found  such  as  I 
could  wish.  I  hear  the  same  of  Lord  Camden's.  And  I  know 
the  same  of  so  many  others,  that  I  think  if  the  proposals  of  the 
Congress  should  appear  tolerably  reasonable,  a  strong  push  may 
be  made  the  ensuing  session  for  the  repeal  of  all  the  mischievous 
acts  that  have  of  late  almost  dissolved  our  union.  I  hope  nothing 
will  prevent  your  being  present.  It  was  said  the  Parliament  would 
meet  in  November.     But  I  hear  now  that  January  is  intended. 

Please  to  present  my  best  respects  to  all  the  good    family    with 

whom  I  long  to  be.     I  am  a  letter  in  debt  to    Georgiana ;  which  I 

will  pen  when  I  can.     With  the  sincerest  esteem  and  respect  I  am 

ever,  my  dear  Lord,  your  obliged  and  affectionate  humble  servant, 

^  B.  Franklin. 

[Same  to  same.] 

London,  Jan.  yth,  1775. 

I  find  it  impossible  to  visit  my  dear  friends  at  Twyford  as  I 
promised  myself,  my  time  is  so  fully  occupied  by  business. 

The  petition  from  the  Congress  has  been  presented  to  the  King 
by  Lord  Dartmouth  to  whom  we  delivered  it  for  that  purpose. 
The  answer  we  received  was,  that  his  Majesty  had  been  pleased  to 
receive  it  very  graciously,  and  had  commanded  him  to  tell  us,  *Tt 

(71) 


282  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 

contained  matters  of  such  importance  that  he  should  as  soon  as 
they  met  lay  it  before  his  two  Houses  of  Parliament."  We  have 
been  advised  not  to  let  it  be  printed  till  it  has  been  communicated 
to  Parliament  as  an  immediate  publication  might  be  deemed  dis- 
respectful to  the  King.  But  I  inclose  a  copy  for  your  perusal.  It 
will  fall  short  of  what  you  wish  in  the  manner,  not  equalling  the 
admirable  remonstrances  of  the  French  Parliaments  or  the  Oz/r 
dcs  Aides ;  but  having  made  some  allowances  for  unpolished 
America,  you  will  not,  I  hope,  think  it  much  amiss.  When  I  con- 
sider that  Congress,  as  consisting  of  men,  the  free,  unbiased,  un- 
solicited choice  of  the  freeholders  of  a  great  country,  selected  from 
no  other  motive,  than  the  general  opinion  of  the  wisdom  and  in- 
tegrity, to  transact  affliirs  of  the  greatest  importance  to  their  con- 
stituents, and  indeed  of  as  great  consequence  as  any  that  have 
come  under  consideration  in  any  great  council  for  ages  past  ;  and 
tiiat  they  have  gone  through  them  with  so  much  coolness,  though 
UJ  ler  great  provocations  to  resentment ;  so  much  firmness  under 
caii-e  to  apprehend  danger,  and  so  much  unanimity  under  every 
end'  rvour  to  divide  and  sow  dissentions  among  them  ;  I  cannot 
but  look  upon  them  with  great  veneration.  And  I  question 
whether  I  should  be  so  proud  of  any  honor,  any  King  could  con- 
fer upon  me,  as  I  am  of  that  I  received  by  only  having  my  health 
drank  by  that  Assembly.  By  the  way  I  am  well  informed  they 
drank  the  Bishop  of  St.  Asaph  in  three  successive  bumpers;  but 
it  was  not  so  mentioned  in  the  papers,  lest  some  other  friends 
might  be  displeased.  I  have  cut  out  of  a  Boston  paper  and  in- 
close an  advertisement  of  the  speech*  by  which  may  be  seen  some- 
thing of  the  esteem  in  which  it  is  held  there  My  best  wishes  attend 
the  whole  good  family.  Miss  Georgiana  will  be  so  good  as  to 
excuse  my  not  writing  to  her  at  present. 

With  sincerest  respect  and  affection,  I  am  ever  your  Lordship's 
most  obedient  and  most  humble  servant,  B.  Franklin. 


[Same   to  same.] 

Philadelphia,  May  15th,  1775. 
My  Dear  Lord — 1  arrived  here  well  the  5th,  after  a  pleasant 

*Tbe  following  is  the  advertisement  cut  from  the  Boston  paper  and  enclosed 
to  the  Bishop  by  Dr.  Franklin  : 

"The  Bishop  of  St.  Asaph's  excellent  spefXH  intended  to  have  been  spoken 
on  the  Bill  for  altering  the  Constitution  of  this  Government,  will  be  published 
tomorrow  in  a  Pamphlet,  and  to  be  fold  by  the  Printers.  It  was  fold  in  England 
for  One  Shilling,  but  the  price  here  is  no  more  than  Six  Coppers.  We  set  it  at 
this  low  price  in  order  that  it  may  be  immediately  purchased  and  read.  It  is  (at. 
the  particular  desire  of  many  gentlemen,)  printed  in  a  Pamphlet,  rather  than 
News-Papers,  that  the  contents  of  so  truly  valuable  a  performance,  may  be  more 
effectually  preserved  for  the  perusal  of  future  generations. 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  283 

passage  of  six  weeks.  I  met  with  a  most  cordial  reception,  I 
should  say  from  all  parties,  but  that  all  parties  are  now  extinguish- 
ed here.  Britain  has  found  means  to  unite  us,  1  had  not  been 
here  a  day  before  I  was  unanimously  elected  by  our  Assembly  a 
delegate  to  the  Congress,  which  met  the  loth,  and  is  now  sitting. 
All  the  governors  have  been  instructed  by  the  Ministry  to  call 
their  Assemblies  and  propose  to  them  Lord  North's  pacific  plan. 
Gen.  Gage  called  his ;  but  before  they  could  meet,  drew  the 
sword;  and  a  war  is  commenced,  which  the  youngest  of  us  may 
not  see  the  end  of.  My  endeavours  will  be  if  possible  to  quench 
it,  as  I  know  yours  will  be;  but  the  satisfaction  of  endeavouring  to 
do  good,  is  perhaps  all  we  can  obtain  or  eftect.  Being  much 
hurried  I  can  only  add  my  best  wishes  of  happiness  to  you  and 
all  the  dear  family,  with  thanks  for  your  many  kindnesses.  I  am 
ever,  with  the  highest  esteem  and  respect  my  Lord,  your  Lp^s 
most  obliged  and  obed't  humble  servant,  B.  Franklin. 

Lord  Bp  St.  Asaph. 


[Same  to  same.] 

Philad'a,  July  7th,  1775. 

I  received  with  great  pleasure  my  dear  friend's  very  kind  letter 
of  April  19,  as  it  informed  me  of  his  welfare  and  that  of  the  amia- 
ble family  in  Jermyn  Street.  I  am  much  obliged  by  the  informa- 
tion of  what  passed  in  Parliament  after  my  departure  ;  in  return  I 
will  endeavor  to  give  you  a  short  sketch  of  the  state  of  affairs  here. 

I  found  at  my  arrival  all  America  from  one  end  of  the  12  united 
Provences,  to  the  other,  busily  employed  in  learning  the  use  of 
arms.  The  attack  upon  the  country  people  near  Boston  by  the 
army  had  roused  everybody  and  exasperated  the  whole  Continent. 
The  tradesmen  of  this  city  were  in  the  field  twice  a  day,  at  5  in  the 
morning  and  six  in  the  afternoon,  disciplining  with  the  utmost  dili- 
gence, all  being  volunteers.  We  have  now  three  Battalions,  a 
troop  of  Light  Horse  and"  a  company  of  Artillery,  who  have  made 
surprising  progress.  The  same  spirit  appears  every  where,  and 
the  unanimity  is  amazing. 

The  day  after  my  arrival,  I  was  unanimously  chosen  by  our  As- 
sembly, then  sitting,  an  additional  delegate  to  the  Congress, 
which  met  the  next  week.  The  numerous  visits  of  old  friends  and 
the  public  business  have  since  devoured  all  my  time  ;  for  we  meet 
at  nine  in  the  morning  and  often  sit  till  four.  I  am  also  upon  a 
Comnnttee  of  Safety  appointed  by  the  Assembly,  which  meets  at 
six,  and  sits  till  near  nine.  The  members  attend  closely  without 
bemg  bribed  to  it,  by  either  salary,  place  or  pension,  or  the  hopes 
of  any  ;  which  I  mention  for  your  reflection  on  the  difference,  be- 
tween a  new,  virtuous  people,  who  have  publick  spirit,  and  an  old 


482  RAMBLING    REMINISCENSES. 

corrupt  one,  who  have  not  so  much  as  an  idea  that  such  a  thing 
exists  in  nature.  There  has  not  been  a  dissenting  voice  among  us 
in  any  Resohition  for  defence,  and  our  army,  which  is  already 
formed,  will  soon  consist  of  above  20,000  men. 

You  will  have  heard  before  this  reaches  you  of  the  defeat  of  the 
Ministerial  troops  in  their  first  sortie  ;  the  several  small  advanta- 
ges we  have  since  had  of  them,  and  the  more  considerable  affair  of 
the  17th,  when  after  two  severe  repulses,  they  carry'd  the  unfinish- 
ed trenches  of  the  post  we  had  just  taken  on  a  hill  near  Charles- 
town.  They  suffered  greatly,  however,  and  I  believe  are  convinc- 
ed by  this  time,  that  they  have  men  to  deal  with,  tho'  unexperi- 
enced, and  not  yet  well  arm'd.  In  their  way  to  this  action,  without 
the  least  necessity,  they  barbarously  plundered  and  burnt  a  fine, 
undefended  town,  opposite  to  Boston,  called  Charlestown,  con- 
sisting of  about  400  houses,  many  of  them  elegantly  built;  some 
sick,  aged,  and  decrepit,  poor  persons,  who  could  not  be  carried 
off  in  time,  perished  in  the  flames.  In  all  our  wars,  from  our  first 
settlement  in  America,  to  the  present  time,  we  never  received  so 
much  damage  from  the  Indian  Savages,  as  in  this  one  day  there. 
Perhaps  Ministers  may  think  this  a  means  of  disposiag  us  to  re- 
conciliation. I  feel  and  see  everywhere  the  reverse.  Most  of  the 
little  property  I  have,  consists  of  houses  in  the  sea  port  towns, 
which  I  suppose  may  all  soon  be  destroyed  in  the  same  way,  and 
yet  I  think  I  am  not  half  so  reconcileable  now  as  I  was  a  month 
ago. 

The  Congress  will  send  one  more  petition  to  the  King,  which  I 
suppose  will  be  treated  as  the  former  was,  and  tjierefore  will  be 
the  last ;  for  tho*  this  may  afford  Britain  one  chance  more  of  re- 
covering our  affections  and  retaining  the  connection,  I  think  she 
has  neither  temper  nor  wisdom  enough  to  seize  the  golden  oppor- 
tunity. When  I  look  forward  to  the  consequences.  I  see  an  end 
to  all  commerce  between  us ;  on  our  sea  coasts  she  may  hold  son:e 
fortified  places  as  the  Spaniards  do  on  the  coast  of  Africa,  but 
can  penetrate  as  little  into  the  country ;  a  very  numerous  fleet, 
extending  1500  miles  at  an  immense  expense  may  prevent  other 
nations  trading  with  us ;  but  as  we  have  or  may  have  within  our- 
selves everything  necessary  to  the  comfort  of  life,  and  generally 
import  only  luxuries  and  superfluities,  her  preventing  our  doing 
that,  will  in  some  respects  contribute  to  our  prosperity.  By  the 
present  stoppage  of  our  trade,  we  save  between  four  and  five  mil- 
lions per  annum,  which  will  do  something  towards  the  expense  of 
the  war.  What  she  will  get  by  it,  I  must  leave  to  be  computed  by 
her  own  political  arithmeticians.  These  are  some  of  my  present 
ideas  which  I  throw  out  to  you  in  the  freedom  of  friendship.  Per- 
haps I  am  too  sanguine  in  my  opinion  of  our  abilities  for  the  de- 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  285 

fence  of  our  country  after  we  shall  have  given  up  our  seaports  to 
destruction,  but  a  little  time  will  show. 

(jeneral  Gage,  we  understand  entered  into  a  treaty  with  the  in- 
habitants of  Boston,  whom  he  had  confined  by  his  works,  in  which 
treaty  it  was  agreed  that  if  they  delivered  ther  arms  to  'the  select 
men,  their  own  magistrates,  they  were  to  be  permitted  to  go  out 
with  their  effects. 

As  soon  as  they  had  delivered  their  arms,  he  seized  them  and 
cavil'd  about  the  meaning  of  the  word  effects,  which  he  said  was 
only  wearing  apparel  and  household  furniture,  and  not  merchan- 
dize or  shop  goods,  which  he  therefore  detains :  And  the  contin- 
ual injuries  and  insults  they  met  with  from  the  soldiery,  made  them 
glad  to  get  out  by  relinquishing  all  that  kind  of  property.  How 
much  those  people  have  suffered,  and  are  now  suffering  rather  than 
submit  to  what  they  think  unconstitutional  acts  of  Parliament,  is 
really  amazing.  Two  or  three  letters  I  send  you  inclosed,  may 
give  you  some,  tho' a  faint  idea,  of  it.  Gage's  perfidy  has  now 
made  him  universally  detested.  When  I  consider  that  all  this 
mischief  is  done  my  country,  by  Englishmen  and  Protestant 
Christians,  of  a  nation  among  whom  I  have  so  many  personal 
friends,  I  am  ashamed  to  feel  any  consolation  in  a  prospect  of  re- 
venge ;  I  chuse  to  draw  it  rather  from  a  confidence  that  we  shall 
sooner  or  later  obtain  reparation  ;  I  have  proposed  therefore  to 
our  people,  that  they  keep  just  accounts,  and  never  resume  the 
commerce  or  the  union,  'till  satisfaction  is  made.  If  it  is  refused 
for  20  years,  I  think  we  shall  be  able  to  take  it  with  interest. 

Your  excellent  advice  was,  that  if  we  are  to  have  a  war,  let  it  be 
carried  on  as  between  nations  who  had  once  been  friends,  and  wish 
to  be  so  again.  In  this  ministerial  war  against  us,  all  Europe  is 
conjur'd  not  to  sell  us  arms  or  amunition,  that  we  may  be  found 
defenceless,  and  more  easily  murdered.  The  humane  Sir  W. 
Draper,  who  had  been  hospitably  entertained  in  every  one  of  our 
Colonies,  proposes  in  his  papers  called  the  Traveller,  to  excite  the 
domestic  slaves,  you  have  sold  us,  to  cut  their  master's  throats. 
Dr.  Johnson,  a  Court  Pensioner,  in  his  Taxation  no  Tyranny, 
adopts  and  recommends  that  measure,  together  with  another  of 
hireing  the  Indian  Savages  to  assassinate  our  Planters  in  the  Back 
Settlements.  They  are  the  poorest  and  most  innocent  of  all  peo- 
ple ;  and  the  Indian  manner  is  to  murder  and  scalp  men,  women 
and  children.  This  book  I  heard  applauded  by  Lord  Sandwich, 
in  Parliament,  and  all  the  ministerial  people  recommended  it. 
Lord  Dunmore  and  Governor  Martin,  have  already,  we  are  told, 
taken  some  steps  towards  carrying  one  part  of  the  project  into  ex- 
ecution, by  inciting  an  insurrection  among  the  Blacks.  And  Gov- 
ernor Carleton,  we  have  certain  accouats,  has  been  very    industri- 


286  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 

ous  in  engaging  the  Indians  to  brgin  their  horrid  work.  This  is 
making  war  like  nations  who  never  had  been  friends  and  never 
wish  to  bej^wch  while  the  world*stands.  You  see  I  am  warm  ;  and 
if  a  temper. naturally  cool  and  phlejj^matic  can.  in  old  age,  which 
often  cools^he  warmest,  be  thus  heated,  you  will  judge  by  that  of 
the  general  temper  here,  which  is  now  little  short  of  madness.  We 
have  however,  as  yet  asked  no  foreign  power  to  assist  us,  nor 
nfade  any  offer  of  our  commerce  to  other  nations  for  their  friend- 
ship. What  another  year's  persecution  may  drive  us  to,  is  yet 
uncertain.  I  drop  this  disagreeable  subject ;  and  will  take  up  one 
that  I  know  must  afford  you  and  the  good  family,  as  my  friends, 
some  pleasure.  It  is  the  state  of  my  own  family,  which  I  found 
in  good  health  ;  my  children  affectionately  dutiful  and  attentive  to 
everything  that  can  be  agreeable  to  me  ;  with  three  very  promising 
grandsons,  in  whom  I  take  great  delight.  So  if  it  were  not  for 
our  public  troubles  and  the  being  absent  from  so  many  that  I  love 
in  England,  my  present  felicity  would  be  as  perfect,  as  in  this 
world  one  could  well  expect  it.  I  enjoy,  however,  what  there  is 
of  it,  while  it  lasts,  mindfull  at  the  same  time  that  its  continuance 
is  like  other  earthly  goods,  uncertain.  Adieu  my  dear  friends, 
and  believe  me  ever,  with  sincere  and  great  esteem,  yours  most 
affectionately,  B.  Frankl'N. 

My  respectful  compliments  to  Mrs.  Shipley. 

Your  health  on  this  side  of  the  water  is  everywhere  drank  by 
the  name  of  the  Bishop. 

I  send  for  your  amusement  a  parcel  of  our  newspapers.  When 
you  have  perused  them  please  to  give  them  to  Mr.  Hartley,  of 
Golden  Square. 

[Note. — In  reference  to  the  conduct  of  General  Gage  and  Dr. 
Johnson,  Dr.  Franklin  remarks  in  his  Papers  entitled  "The  retort 
courteous,"  vol.  ii,  page  485  of  his  Posthumous  Works: 

"General  Gage  being  with  his  army,  (before  the  declaration  ol 
open  war)  in  peaceable  possession  of  Boston,  shut  its  gates,  and 
placed  guards  all  around  to  prevent  its  conununication  with  the 
country.  The  inhabitants  were  on  the  point  of  starving.  The 
General,  though  they  were  evidently  at  his  mercy,  fearing  that 
while  they  had  any  arms  in  their  hands,  frantic  desperation  n>ight 
possibly  do  him  some  mischief,  proposed  to  them  to  capitulate, 
in  which  he  stipulated,  that  if  they  would  deliver  up  their  arms, 
they  might  leave  the  town  with  their  family  and, ^^I'fl'j.  In  faith 
of  this  agreement,  they  delivered  their  arms.  But  when  they  be- 
gan to  pack  up  for  their  departure,  they  were  informed,  that  by 
the  word  goods,  the  General  understood  only  household  goods, 
that  is^  their  beds,  chairs,  and  tables,  not  merchant  goods ;  those 


RAMBLING    REMINIS  CENSES.  287 

he  was  Informed  they  were  indebted  for  to  the  merchants  of  Eng- 
land, and  he  must  secure  them  for  the  creditors.  They  were  ac- 
cordingly all  seized,  to  an  immense  value,  zvhat  had bden  paid  for 
not  excepted.  It  is  to  be  supposed,  though  we  never  heard  of  it, 
that  this  very  honorable  General,  when  he  returned  home,  made  a 
just  distribution  of  those  goods,  or  their  value,  among  the  said 
creditors.  But  the  cry  nevertheless  continued.  These  Boston  peo- 
ple do  710 1  pay  then'  debts  I 

The  army  having  thus  ruined  Boston,  proceeded  to  different 
parts  of  the  Continent.  They  got  possession  of  all  the  capital 
trading  towns.  The  tro(  ps  gorged  themselves  with  plunder.  They 
stopped  all  the  trade  ot  Philadelphia  for  near  a  year,  of  Rhode 
Island  longer,  of  New  Yoric  near  eight  years,  of  Charleston  in 
South  Carolina,  and  Savannah  in  Georgia,  I  forget  how  long.  This 
continued  interruption  of  their  commerce,  ruined  many  merchants. 
The  army  also  burnt  to  the  ground  the  fine  towns  of  F'al mouth 
and  Charlestown  near  Boston,  New  London,  Fairfield,  Norwalk, 
Esopus,  Norfolk,  the  chief  trading  town  in  Virginia,  besides  in- 
numerable tenements  and  private  farm  houses.  This  wanton  de- 
struction of  property  operated  doubly  to  the  disabling  of  our 
merchants,  who  were  importers  from  Britain,  in  making  their  pay- 
ments, by  the  immoderate  loss  they  sustained  themselves,  and 
also  the  loss  suffered  by  their  country  debtors,  who  had  bought 
of  them  the  British  goods,  and  who  were  now  rendered  unable  to 
pay.  The  debts  to  Britain  of  course  remained  undischarged,  and 
the  clamor  continued,  These  knavish  Americans  wilTuot pay  us  ! 

Many  of  the  British  debts,  particularly  in  Virginia  and  the  Car- 
olinas,  arose  from  the  sales  made  of  negroes  in  those  provinces  by 
the  Britisli  Guinea  Merchants.  These,  with  all  before  in  the  coun- 
try, were  employed  when  the  war  came  on,  in  raising  tobacco  and 
rice  for  remittance  in  payment  of  British  debts.  An  order  arrives 
from  England,  advised  by  one  of  their  rrost  celebrated  moralists, 
Dr.  Johnson,  in  his  Taxation  no  Tyranny,  to  excite  these  slaves 
to  rise,  cut  the  throats  of  their  purchasers,  and  resort  to  the  Brit- 
ish army,  where  they  should  be  rewarded  with  freedom.  This 
was  done,  and  the  planters  were  thus  deprived  of  near  30,000  of 
these  working  people.  Yet  the  demand  for  those  sold  and  unpaid 
still  exists;  and  the  cry  continues  against  the  Virginians  and  Car- 
olinians, they  do  not  pay  thvii  debts  T^^ 


Philad'l,  Sep.  13,  1775. 

My  Dear   Friend  : — I  write  but  seldom  to  you,  because  at  this 

time  the  most  innocent  correspondence  with  me  may  be  suspected, 

and  attended  with  inconvenience  to  yourself.     Our  united  wishes 

ibr  a  reconciliation  of  the  two  countries,  are  not  I  fear  soon  to  be 


288  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 

accomplished;  for  I  hear  your  niinistry  are  determined  to  perse- 
vere in  their  mad  measures,  and  here  I  find  the  firmest  determina- 
tion to  resist  at  all  hazards.  The  event  may  be  doubtful,  but  it  is 
clear  to  me  that  if  the  contest  is  only  to  be  ended  by  our  submis- 
sion, it  will  not  be  a  short  one.  We  have  given  up  our  commerce ; 
our  best  ships,  34  sail  left  this  port  on  the  9th  instant.  And  in  our 
minds  we  give  up  the  sea  coast,  tho'  part  may  be  a  little  disputed, 
to  the  barberous  ravages  of  your  ships  of  war  ;  but  the  internal 
country  we  shall  defend.  It  is  a  good  one  and  fruitful.  It  is.  with 
our  liberties,  worth  defending,  and  it  will  itself,  by  its  fertility  ena- 
ble us  to  defend  it.  Agriculture  is  the  great  source  of  wealth  and 
plenty.  By  cutting  off  our  trade  you  have  thrown  us  to  the  Earth, 
whence  like  Antceiis  we  shall  rise  yearly  with  fresh  strength  and 
vigor. 

This  will  be  delivered  to  you  by  Mr.  Jonathan  Williams,  a  neph- 
ew of  mine,  whom  I  left  in  my  lodgings.  Anything  you  see  fit  to 
send  me,  may  be  safely  trusted  to  his  care  and  direction.  He  is  a  val- 
uable young  man,  having,  with  great  industry  and  excellent  talents 
for  business,  a  very  honest  and  good  heart.  If  he  should  stay  in 
London,  I  beg  leave  to  recommend  him  to  a  little  of  your  notice. 

I  am  here  immersed  in  so  much  business  that  I  have  scarce  time 
to  eat  or  sleep.  The  Winter,  I  promise  myself,  will  bring  with  it 
some  relaxation.  This  bustle  is  unsuitable  to  age.  How  happy  I 
was  in  the  sweet  retirement  of  Twyford,  where  my  only  business 
was  a  little  scribling  in  the  Garden  Study,  and  my  pleasure,  your 
conversation,  with  that  of  your  family  ! 

With  sincere  and  great  esteem  and  respect,  I  am  ever,  my  dear 
friend,  your  affectionate  and  most  obed't  and  hum'le  Servant, 

B.  Frankiin. 

Upon  the  third  page  of  this  letter  is  the  following  memoranda  in 
Dr.  Franklin's  hand  writing : 

The  perfidy  of  General  Gage  in  breaking  his  capitulation  wiih 
Boston  and  detaining  their  effects  ; 

The  firing  of  Broadsides  from  men  of  war  in  defenceless  town* 
and  villages  filled  with  women  and  children; 

The  burning  of  Charleston,  wantonly,  without  the  least  reason  or 
provocation ; 

The  encouraging  pur  Blacks  to  rise  and  murder  their  masters; 

But  above  all,  the  exciting  of  the  Savages  to  fall  upon  our  innox- 
ious outsettlers,  fanners  (who  have  no  concern  in,  and  from  their 
situation  can  scarce  have  any  knowledge  of  this  dispute)  especially 
when  it  is  considered  that  the  Indian  manner  of  making  war,  is  by 
surprising  families  in  the  night  and  killing  all,  without  distinctions 
of  age  or  sex  !  What  would  be  thought  of  it,  if  the  Congress 
should  hire  an  Italian  Bravo  to  break  into  the  house  of  one  of  your 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  289 

ministers  and  murder  him  in  his  bed  ?  All  his  friends  would  open 
in  full  cry  against  us  as  assassins,  murderers,  and  villians,  and  the 
walls  of  our  Parliament  House  would  resound  with  their  execra- 
tions !     Of  these  two  damnable  crimes,  which  is  the  greatest  ? 

These  proceedings  of  officers  of  the  Crown,  who  it  is  presumed, 
either  act  by  Instruction,  or  know  they  shdW  please  by  such  conduct, 
give  people  here  a  horrid  idea  of  the  spirit  oi  your  Government. 


Passy  near  Paris,  Feb.  9th,  1778. 

My  very  dear  Lord: — I  flatter  myself  that  notwithstanding  dis- 
tance, absence,  and  the  interruption  of  friendly  correspondence 
which  the  circumstances  of  the  times  occasion,  you  may  still  be 
pleased  to  hear  (what  I  wish  to  hear  of  you  and  your  truly  amiable 
family)  that  health  continues,  and  as  much  happiness  as  public 
calamities  will  permit  to  sensible  minds.  We  both  of  us  have  the 
satisfaction  of  having  join'd  in  endeavours  to  prevent  these  calami- 
ties ;  and  I  know  you  join  with  me  in  the  sincerest  wishes  of  see- 
ing an  end  to  them.     But  the  time  is  not  yet  come. 

The  bearer  of  this  line  is  Mr.  Alexander,  son  of  an  intimate  and 
dear  friend  of  mine.  He  is  ambitious  of  the  honor  of  being  known 
to  so  good  a  man  as  the  Bishop  of  St.  Asaph.  He  is  a  young 
gentleman  of  very  promising  parts,  and  bears  an  excellent  char- 
acter. I  beg  leave  to  recommend  him  to  your  Lordship's  notice. 
I  am  sure  he  will  endeavor  to  merit  it.  With  the  greatest  esteem 
and  respect  I  am  ever  most  affectionally  your  Lordship's  obedient 
humble  servant,  .  B.  F. 


[Same  to  same.] 

Passy,  June  loth,  1782. 

I  received  and  read  the  letter  from  my  dear  and  much  respected 
friend  with  infinite  pleasure.  After  so  long  a  silence,  and  the  long 
continuance  of  its  unfortunate  causes,  a  line  from  you  was  a  prog- 
nostic of  happier  times  approaching,  when  we  might  converse  and 
communicate  without  danger  from  the  malevolence  of  men  en- 
raged by  the  ill  success  of  their  destracted  projects. 

I  long  with  you  for  the  return  of  peace,  on  the  general  princi- 
ples of  humanity.  The  hope  of  being  able  to  pass  a  few  more  of 
my  last  days  happily  in  the  sweet  conversations  of  company  I 
once  enjoyed  at  Twyford,  is  a  particular  motive  that  adds  strength 
to  the  general  wish,  and  quickens  my  industry  to  procure  that 
best  of  blessings.  After  much  occasion  to  consider  the  folly  and 
mischiefs  of  a  state  of  warfare  and  the  little  or  no  advantage  ob- 
tained even  by  those  nations  who  have  conducted  it  with  the  most 
success,  I  have  been  apt  to  think  that  there  has  never  been  or  ever 
will  be  any  such  thing  as  a  good  war,  or  a  bad  peace. 


(ni^ 


290  RAMBLING    REMINISCENSES. 

You  ask  if  I  still  relish  my  old  studies  ?  I  relish  them  but  I  can- 
not pursue  them.  My  time  is  engross'd,  unhappily,  with  other 
concerns.  I  requested  of  the  Con,£i;ress  last  year  my  discharge 
from  this  public  station,  that  I  might  enjoy  a  little  leisure  in  the 
evening  of  a  long  life  of  lousiness  ;  but  it  was  refused  me;  and  I 
have  been  obliged  to  drudge  on  a  little  longer. 

You  are  happy  as  your  years  come  on  in  having  thai  dear  and 
most  amiable  family  about  you.  Four  daughters — how  rich  !  I 
have  but  one,  and  she  necessarily  detained  from  me  at  1,000 
leagues  distance.  I  feel  the  want  of  that  tender  care  of  me  which 
might  be  expected  from  a  daughter  and  would  give  the  world  for 
one.  Your  shades  are  all  placed  in  a  row  over  my  fire  place,  so 
that  I  not  only  have  you  always  in  my  mind,  but  constantly  before 
my  eyes. 

The  cause  of  liberty  and  America  has  been  greatly  obliged  to 
you.  I  hope  you  will  live  long  to  see  that  country  flourish  under 
its  new  constitution,  which  I  am  sure  will  give  you  great  pleasure. 
Will  you  permit  me  to  express  another  hope,  that  now  your 
friends  are  in  power,  they  will  take  the  first  opportunity  of  show- 
ing the  sense  they  ought  to  have  of  your  virtues  and  your  merit. 

Please  to  make  my  best  respects  acceptable  to  Mrs.  Shipley, 
and  embrace  for  me  tenderly  ail  our  dear  children.  With  the 
utmost  esteem,  respect  and  veneration,  I  am  ever  my  dear  friend 
y^ours  most  aftectionately, 

B.  Franklin. 


[Same  to  same.] 

Passy,  March  17th.  1783. 

I  received  with  great  pleasure  my  dear  and  respected  Iritnd'.s 
letter  of  the  5th  inst.,  as  it  informed  me  of  the  welfare  of  a  family 
I  so  much  esteem  and  love. 

The  clamor  against  the  peace  in  your   parliament  would  alarm 
me  for  its  duration,  if  I  were  not  of  opinion  with  you,  that  the  at- 
tack is  rather  against  the  minister.      I  am   confident  none  of  th- 
opposition  would  have  made  a  better  peace  for   England  "if  thc\ 
had  been  in  his  place ;  at  least  1  am  sure  that  Lord  Stormont,  who 
seems  loudest  in  railing  at   it,  is    not    the    man   that  could   have 
mended  it.     The  reasons  I  will  give  you  when  I  shall  have,   what 
1  hope  to  have,  the  great  happiness  of  seeing  you  once  more,  and 
conversing  with  you.     They  talk  much  of  there  being  no  recipro- 
city in  our  treaty.     They  think  nothing  then  of  our  passing  over 
in  silence  the  atrocities  committed  by  their  troops,   and   demand 
ing  no  satisfaction  for  their  wanton  burnmgs  and  devastations  of 
our  fair  towns  and  countries.     They  have  heretofore  confest   the 
war  to  be  unjust,  and  nothing  is  plainer  in  reasoning  than  that  the 


RAMBLING     REMINIi4?I$ltj|sO''    VrT"  2QI 

mischiefs  done  in  an  unjust  war  shoulA  oe  Vdpaired.  '  Can  Eng- 
lishmen be  so  partial  to  themselves,  as\|oC]li!iagine  th^-have/a 
rio^ht  to  plunder  and  destroy  as  much  as^  tJley  pjeas_e,  jarfd  -tnen 
without  satisfying  for  the  injuries  they  have  done,  -tcF-tfaVe^  peace 
on  equal  terms  ?  We  were  favorable  and  did  not  demand  what 
justice  entided  us  to.  We  shall  probably  be  blamed  for  it  by  our 
constituents.  And  I  still  think  it  would  be  the  interest  of  Eng- 
land voluntarily  to  offer  reparation  of  those  injuries,  and  effect  it 
as  much  as  may  be  in  her  power.  But  this  is  an  interest  she  will 
never  see. 

Let  us  now  forgive  and  forget.  Let  each  country  seek  its  ad- 
vancement in  its  own  internal  advantages  of  arts  and  agriculture, 
not  in  retarding  or  preventing  the  prosperty  of  the  other.  Amer- 
ica will,  with  God's  blessing,  become  a  great  and  happy  country  ; 
and  England,  if  she  has  at  length  gained  wisdom,  will  have  gained 
something:  more  valuable  and  more  essential  to  her  prosperity, 
than  all  she  has  lost ;  and  will  still  be  a  great  and  respectable  na- 
tion. Her  great  disease  at  present,  is  the  number  and  enormous 
salaries  and  emoluments  of  office.  Avarice  and  ambition  are 
strong  passions,  and  separately  act  with  great  tone,  on  the  human 
mind  ;  but  when  both  are  united  and  may  be  gratified  in  the  same 
object,  their  violence  is  almost  irresistible,  and  they  hurry  men 
headlong  into  factions  and  contentions  destructive  of  all  good  gov- 
ernment. As  long,  therefore,  as  these  great  emoluments  subsist, 
your  Parliament  will  be  a  stormy  sea  and  your  public  Counsels 
confounded  by  private  interests.  But  it  requires  much  public 
spirit  and  virtue  to  abolish  them  ;  more,  perhaps,  than  can  now  be 
found  in  a  nation  so  long  corrupted. 

Please  to  present  my  affectionate  respects  to  Mrs.  Shipley,  and 
all  my  young  friends,  whom  I  long  to  see  once  more  before  I  die. 
I  hope  soon  to  congratulate  you  on  the  marriages  that  I  hear  are 
in  contemplation.  Everything  interests  me  that  regards  the  happi- 
ness of  your  family  ;  being  ever,  with  the  sincerest  esteem  and 
affection,  my  dear  Sir,  your  most  obedient  and  most  hur.ible  ser- 
vant, B.  Franklin. 


[Same  to  same.] 

Passy,  Aug.  22nd,  1784. 
Dear  Friend. — When  I  am  long  without  hearing  from  you, 
I  please  myself  with  re-perusing  some  of  your  former  letters.  In 
your  last  of  April  24th,  '83,  you  mention  the  departure  of  Anna 
Maria  with  her  husband  for  Bengal."^  I  hope  you  have  since 
heard  often  of  their  welfare  there.     When  you  next  favor  me  with 

♦Note.     Anna  Maria  married  Mr.  Jones,    afterwards    Sir    William   Jones,  a 
learned  Indian  Judge  and  celebrated  linguist  and  Oriental  scholar, 


292  RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES. 

a  line,  please  to  be  particular  in  letting  me  know  how  they  do. 
My  grandson,  a  good  young  man,  (who  as  a  son  makes  up  to  me 
my  loss  by  the  estrangement  of  his  father,)  will  have  the  honor  of 
delivering  you  this  line,  and  will  bring  me,  I  trust,  good  accounts 
of  your  health,  and  that  of  the  rest  of  your  family.  I  beg  leave 
to  recommend  him  to  your  civilitities  and  counsels.  As  to  my- 
self, 1  am  at  present  well  and  hearty,  the  stone  excepted,  which, 
however,  gives  me  but  little  pain  and  not  often,  its  chief  inconve- 
nience being  that  it  prevents  my  using  a  carriage  on  the  pavement ; 
but  I  can  take  some  exercise  in  walking,  am  cheerful  and  enjoy 
my  friends  as  usual.     God  be  thanked  1 

Your  kind  invitation  to  spend  some  time  at  Twyford  with  the 
family  I  love,  affects  me  sensibly.  Nothing  would  make  me  hap- 
pier. I  have  solicited  the  Congress  to  discharge  me,  but  they 
have  sent  me  another  Commission,  that  will  employ  me  another 
year  at  least ;  and  it  seems  my  fate,  constantly  to  wish  lor  repose, 
and  never  to  obtain  it. 

With  the  greatest  and  most  sincere  esteem  and  respect,  I  am 
ever,  my  dear  friend,  yours  most  affectionately,     B  Franklin 


[Same  to  same.] 

Star  Inn,  Southampton,  Aug.  1785. 

Dear  Friend,  1  am  just  arrived  herefrom  Havre  de  Grace, 
not  at  all  fatigued  by  my  journey  thither,  being  favored  with  one 
of  the  King's  letters  carried  by  large  mules  who  walk  very  easy. 
But  I  cannot  bear  a  wheel  carriage  or  I  would  do  myself  the  great 
pleasure  of  going  to  see  you  and  the  family  I  love  at  Twyford. 
I  hear  that  my  cousin  William,  who  is  coming  from  London  to 
join  us,  proposed  to  stay  a  day  or  two  on  a  visit  to  you.  I  write 
the  inclosed  note  to  hasten  his  coming  hither,  as  we  want  his  as- 
sistance in  our  preparations,  and  shall  probably  sail  sooner  than 
he  expects.  My  respects  and  best  wishes  attend  you  and  yours. 
Adieu  my  very  dear,  dear  friend,  and  believe  me  ever  your's  most 
affectionately  B.  Franklin. 

My  Grand-son  desires  to  be  respectfully  remembered. 

[Jonathan  Williams*  to  the  Bishop  of  St.  Asaph.] 

Philadelphia,  Sep.  19th,  1785. 

My  Lord: — I  have  already  given  your  Lordship  an  account  of 
our  agreeable  passage  and  safe  arrival ;  least  that  letter  should 
fail,  I  shall  repeat   the  substance  of  it. 

Our  venerable  friend,  the  Doctor,  was,  I  think,  better  at  sea, 
than  he  had  been  ashore  ;  there  was  but  one  day,  in  which  he  suf- 
fered any  pain  and  that  was  not  severe.     There  never  was  on  the 

♦Nephew  of  Dr.  Franklin. 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENCES.  293 

ocean,  a  better  ship,  better  provided,  nor  better  commanded.  We 
were  six  weeks  at  sea  and  then  landed  on  the  wharf  amid  the  ac- 
clamations of  thousands  of  grateful  people,  who  rejoiced  to  see 
their  beri%factor  return  to  spend  the  remainder  of  his  life  among 
them  ;  every  public  mark  of  respect  was  immediately  shown  him, 
and  in  spight  of  his  desire  of  retirement,  the  people  insist  unani- 
mously on  being  governed  by  him. 

Your  Lordship  will  see  by  the  public  prints  what  are  the  gene- 
ral sentiments,  and  you  will  see  nothing  exaggerated. 

When  I  hear  of  another  opportunity  I  will  write  a  third  l^etter  ; 
for  Miss  Shipley's  last  command  made  so  strong  an  impression  on 
my  mind,  that  my  conscience  would  not  be  at  rest,  if  I  did  not 
take  at  least  three  chances  of  conve3'ing  to  her  so  agreeable  news, 
as  that  of  the  welfare  and  happiness  of  her  lover. 

With  my  most  respectful  compliments  to  your  Lady  and  daugh- 
ter, I  have  the  honor  to  be,  with  the  greatest  respect,  my  Lord, 
your  Lordship's  most  obedient  and  most  humble  servant, 

Jon.  Williams. 


[Dr.  Franklin  to  the  Lord    Bishop  of  St.  Asaph.] 

Philadelphia,  Feb.  24,  1786. 

Dear  Friend: — I  received  lately  your  kind  letter  of  Nov. 
27th.  My  reception  here,  was,  as  you  have  heard,  very  honoura- 
ble indeed  ;  but  I  was  betray'd  by  it,  and  some  remains  of  ambi- 
tion, from  which  I  had  imagined  myself  free,  to  accept  the  Chair 
of  Government  for  the  State  of  Pennsylvania,  when  the  proper 
thing  for  me  was  repose  and  a  private  life.  I  hope,  however,  to 
be  able  to  bear  the  fatigue  for  one  year,  and  then  to  retire. 

I  have  much  regretted  our  having  so  little  opportunity  for  con- 
versation when  we  last  met.  You  could  have  given  me  infor- 
mation and  counsels  that  I  wanted,  but  we  were  scarce  a  minute 
together  without  being  broke  in  upon.  I  am  to  thank  you,  how- 
ever, for  the  pleasure  I  had  after  our  parting,  in  reading  the  new 
book  you  gave  me,  which  I  think  generally  well  written,  and  likely 
to  do  good.  Tho'  the  reading  time  of  most  people  is  of  late  so 
taken  up  with  newspapers  and  little  periodical  pamphlets,  that  few 
now-adays  venture  to.attempt  reading  a  Quarto  Volume.  I  have 
admired  to  see  that  in  the  last  century,  a  Folio,  Burton  on  Melan- 
cholly,  went  thro'  six  editions  in  about  twenty  years.  We  have 
I  believe  more  readers  now,  but  not  of  such  large  books. 

You  seem  desirous  of  knowing  what  progress  we  make  here  in 
improving  our  Governments.  We  are,  I  think,  in  the  right  road 
of  improvement,  for  we  are  making  experirnents.  I  do  not  op- 
pose all  that  seems  wrong,  for  the  multitude  are  more  effectually 
set  right  by  experience,  than^kept  from  going  wrong  by  reasoning 


294  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

with  them.  And  I  think  we  are  daily  more  and  more  enlightened  : 
So  that  I  have  no  doubt  of  our  obtaining  in  a  few  years  as  much 
public  felicity  as  good  government  is  capable  of  affording.  Your 
newspapers  are  filled  with  fictitious  accounts  of  anarchy  dnd  con 
fusion,  distresses  and  miseries  we  are  supposed  to  be  involved  in, 
as  consequences  of  the  revolution  ;  and  the  few  remaining  friends 
of  the  old  Government  among  us,  take  pains  to  magnify  every 
little  inconvenience  a  change  in  the  course  of  commerce  may  have 
occasioned.  To  obviate  the  complaints  they  endeavour  to  excite, 
was  written  the  enclosed  little  piece,  from  which  you  may  form  a 
truer  idea  of  our  situation  than  your  own  public  prints  would  give 
you.  And  I  can  assure  you  that  the  great  body  of  our  nation, 
find  themselves  happy  in  the  change,  and  have  not  the  smallest  in- 
clination to  return  to  the  Domination  of  Britain.  There  could  not 
be  a  stronger  proof  of  the  general  approbation  of  the  measures 
that  promoted  the  change  itself,  than  has  been  given  by  the  as- 
sembly and  council  of  the  State,  in  the  nearly  unanimous  choice 
for  their  Governor  of  one  who  had  been  so  much  concerned  in 
those  measures ;  the  assembly  being  themselves  the  unbribed 
choice  of  the  people,  and  therefore  may  be  truly  supposed,  of  the 
same  sentiments.  I  say  nearly  unanimous,  because  of  between  70 
and  80  votes,  there  were  only  my  own  and  one  other  in  the  nega- 
tive. 

As  to  my  domestic  circumstances,  of  which  you  kindly  desire 
to  hear  something,  they  are  at  present  as  happy  as  I  could  wish 
them.  I  am  surrounded  by  my  offspring,  a  dutiful,  affectionate 
daughter  in  my  house,  with  six  grand  children,  the  eldest  of  which 
you  have  seen,  who  is  now  at  College  in  the  next  street,  finishing 
the  learned  part  of  his  education  ;  the  others  promising,  both  for 
parts  and  good  dispositions.  What  their  conduct  may  be  when 
they  grow  up  and  enter  the  im[)ortant  scenes  of  life.  I  shall  not  live 
to  see  and  I  Q.2,m\^\.  foresee.  I  therefore  enjoy  among  them  the 
present  hour,  and  leave  the  future  to  Providence.  He  that  raises 
a  large  family,  does  indeed,  while  he  lives  to  observe  them,  stand, 
as  Watts  says,  a  broader  mafk  for  sorrow ;  but  then  he  stands  a 
broader  mark  for  pleasure  too.  When  we  launch  our  little  Fleet 
of  barques  into  the  ocean,  bound  to  different  ports,  we  hope  for 
each  a  prosperous  voyage ;  but  contrary  winds,  hidden  shoals, 
storms  and  enemies,  come  in  for  a  share  in  the  disposition  of  events  ; 
and  though  these  occasion  a  mixture  of  disappointment,  yet  con- 
bidering  the  risque  when  we  can  make  no  insurance,  we  should 
think  ourselves  happy  if  some  return  with  success.  My  son's  son, 
whom  you  have  also  seen,  having  had  a  fine  farm  of  600  acres  con- 
veyed to  him  by  his  father  when  he  was  at  Southampton,  has  dropt 
for  the  present  his  views  of  acting  in  the  political  line,  and  applies 


RAMBLING     REMINISCENSES.  295 

himself  ardently  to  the  study  and  practice  of  agriculture.  This  is 
much  more  agreeable  to  me,  who  esteem  it  the  most  useful,  the 
most  independent,  and  therefore  the  noblest  of  employments.  His 
lands  are  on  navigable  waters,  communicating  with  the  Delaware, 
and  but  about  sixteen  miles  from  this  city.  He  has  associated  to 
himself  a  very  skilful  English  farmer,  lately  arrived  here,  who  is 
to  instruct  him  in  the  business,  and  partake,  for  a  term,  of  the 
profits  ;  so  that  there  is  a  great  apparent  probability  of  their  suc- 
cess. 

You  will  kindly  expect  a  word  or  two  concerning  myself  My 
health  and  spirits  continue,  thanks  to  God,  as  when  you  saw  me. 
The  only  complaint  I  then  had,  does  not  grow  worse,  and  is  tol- 
erable. I  still  have  enjoyment  in  the  company  of  my  friends  ;  and 
being  easy  in  my  circumstances,  have  many  reasons  to  like  living. 
But  the  course  of  nature  must  soon  put  a  period  to  my  present 
mode  of  existence.  This  I  shall  submit  to  with  less  regret,  as, 
having  seen  during  a  long  life,  a  good  deal  of  this  world,  I  feel  a 
growing  curiosity  to  be  acquainted  with  some  other,  and  can  cheer- 
fully with  filial  confidence  resign  n^y  spirit  to  the  conduct  of  that 
great  and  good  Parent  of  mankind,  who  created  it,  and  who  has  so 
graciously  protected  and  prospered  me  from  my  birth  to  the  pres- 
ent hour.  Wherever  I  am.  I  hope  always  to  retain  the  pleasing- 
remembrance  of  your  friendship,  being  with  sincere  and  great  es- 
teem, my  dear  friend,  yours  most  affectionately,    B.  Franklin. 

We  all  join  in  respects  to  Madame  Shipley  and  best  wishes  for 
the  whole  amiable  family. 


[Dr.  Franklin  to  Miss  Catherine  Louisa  Shipley.] 

Philad'a.  May  2nd,  1786. 
My  Dear  Young  Friend. — I  received  both  your  kind  letters, 
that  of  Aug.  2nd,  and  that  of  Sep.  30th,  together  with  the  charm- 
ing purse  of  13  stripes  and  stars,  which  you  have  so  obligingly 
made  for  me  and  sent  me.  In  return  I  have  knit  for  you  and  send 
enclosed,  the  art  of  procuring  pleasant  dreams,  the  little  piece  you 
demanded  of  me.  Accept  it  with  my  thanks  both  for  the  purse 
and  our  dear  Georgiana's  pleasing  verses.  I  write  to  her  by  this 
opportunity,  and  to  my  inestimable  friend  your  father.  Will  you 
be  good  enough  to  excuse,  therefore,  the  shortness  of  this  to  you. 
My  time  is  so  cut  to  pieces  with  everybody's  business,  that  I  can 
neither  do  or  say  all  I  would.  My  love  to  all,  and  believe  me 
ever,  my  dear  friend,  your  most  affectionately.       B.  Franklin. 

[Dr   Franklin  to   Miss  C.  L.  Shipley.] 

Philad'a.  April  27th,  1789. 
It  is  only  a  few    days  since  the  kind    letter   of  my  dear  young 


296  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 

friend,  dated  Dec.  24th,  came  to  my  hand.  I  had  before  in  the 
public  papers  met  with  the  affecting  news  that  letter  contained.  ' 
That  excellent  man  has  then  left  us  !  His  departure  is  a  loss,  not  I 
to  his  family  and  friends  only,  but  to  his  nation  and  to  the  world, 
For  he  was  intent  on  doing  good,  had  wisdom  to  devise  the  means, 
and  talents  to  promote  them.  His  sermon  before  the  Society  for 
propagating  the  Gospel,  and  his  speech  intended  to  be  spoken, 
are  proofs  of  his  ability,  as  well  as  his  humanity.  Had  his  coun- 
sels in  those  pieces  been  attended  to  by  the  Ministers,  how  much 
bloodshed  might  have  been  prevented,  and  how  much  expense 
and  disgrace  to  tljie  nation  avoided  ! 

Your  reflections  on  the  constant  calmness  and  composure  at- 
tending his  death,  are  very  sensible.  Such  instances  seem  to 
show,  that  the  good  sometimes  enjoy  in  dying  a  foretaste  of  the 
happy  state  they  are   about  to  enter. 

According  to  course  of  years,  I  should  have  quitted  this  world 
before  him.  I  shall,  however,  not  belong  in  following.  I  am  now 
in  my  84th  year,  and  the  last  year  has  considerably  enfeebled  me, 
so  that  I  hardly  expect  to  remain  another.  You  will  then,  my 
dear  friend,  consider  this  probably  the  last  line  to  be  received  from 
me,  and  as  a  taking  leave,  present  my  best  and  most  sincere  res- 
pects to  your  good  mother,  and  love  to  the  rest  of  the  family,  to 
whom  I  wish  all  happiness  ;  and  believe  me  to  be  while  I  do  live,* 
your  most  affectionately,  B,  Franklin. 

RexMarks    on  Chapter    xi  of  the  Consideration  on  Policy, 
Trade,  &c.,  by  Dr.  Franklin. 

Suppose  husbandry  well  understood  and  thoroughly  practiced 
in  a  country,  and  all  the  lands  fully  cultivated. 

Those  employed  in  the  cultivation,  will  then  raise  more  corn  and 
other  provisions,   than  they  can  consume. 

But  they  will  want  manufactures. 

Suppose  each  family  may  make  all  that  is  necessary  for  itself. 

Then  the  surplus  corn  must  be  sold  and  exported. 

Farms  near  the  sea  or  navigable  rivers  may  do  this  easily, 
But  those  distant  will  find  it  difficult.  From  some  the  expense  of 
carriage  will  exceed  the  value  of  the  commodity.  Therefore,  if 
some  other  means  of  making  an  advantage  of  it  are  not  discover- 
ed, the  cultivatior  will  abate  of  his  labors  and  raise  no  more  than 
he  can  consume  in  his  family. 

But  tho'  his  corn  may  not  bear  the  expense  of  carriege  to  mar- 
ket, nor  his  flax,  nor  his  wool,  yet  possibly  linnen  and  woolen  cloth 
may  bear  it. 

♦Dr.  Franklin  died  April  17th,  1790. 


RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES.  297 

Therefore,  if  he  can  draw  around  him  working  people  who  have 
no  lands  on  which  to  subsist,  and  who  will  for  the  corn  and  other 
subsistence  he  can  furnish  them  with,  work  up  his  flax  and  wool 
into  cloth,  then  is  his  corn,  also,  turned  into  cloth,  and  with  his  flax 
and  wool  rendered  profitable,  so  that  it  may  easily  be  carried  to 
market,  and  the  value  brought  home  in  money.  This  seems  the 
chief  advantage  in  manufactures.  For  those  working  people  sel- 
dom receive  more  than  a  bare  subsistence  for  their  labour  ;  and 
the  very  reason  why  six  penny  worth  of  flax  is  worth  perhaps 
twenty  shillings  after  they  have  wrought  it  into  cloth,  is,  that  they 
have  during  the  operation  consumed  nineteen  shillings  and  six 
pence  worth  of  provisions. 

So  that  the  value  of  manufactures  arises  out  of  the  earth,  and  is 
not  the  creation  of  labour  as  commonly  supposed. 

When  a  grain  of  corn  is  put  into  the  ground  it  may  produce  ten 
grains.  After  defraying  the  expense,  here  is  a  real  increase  of 
wealth.  Above  we  see  that  manufactures  make  no  addition  to  it, 
they  only  change  its  form.  So  trade  or  the  exchange  of  manufac- 
tures, makes  no  increase  of  wealth  among  mankind  in  general  ;  no 
more  than  the  game  of  commerce  at  cards  makes  any  increase  of 
money  among  the  company,  tho'  particular  persons  may  be  gain- 
ers while  others  are  losers.  But  the  clear  produce  of  agriculture 
is  clear  additional  wealth. 


298  RAMBLING    REMINISCENCES. 


APPENDIX    C. 

The  following  are  the  names  of  the  more  prominent  Guernsey 
men  since  1650 : 

Sir  Edmund  Andros,  Colonial  Governor  of  New  York  and  Vir 
ginia,  etc. 

Maj.-Gen.  Sir  Isaac  Brock. 

Daniel  de  Lisle  Brock,  Bailiff. 

Col.  Saumarez  Brock,  Knight  of  Hanover. 

Mrs.  Carey  Brock,  Author. 

Sir  Octavius  Carey. 

Sir  Stafford  Carey,  Jurist. 

Rev.  Peter  Paul  Dobree,  Scholar. 

Dr.  Hoskins,  Author. 

Sir  Jno.  Jeremie,  Governor  of  Sierra  Leone. 

Dr.  John  MacCulloch,  Author. 

Sir  Edgar  MacCulloch,  Bailiff. 

Georges  Metevier,  Author. 

Osmond  de  B.  Priaulx,  Author. 

Maj-Gen.  Le  Marchant. 

Col.  H.  Le  Mesurier. 

Admiral  Lord  Saumerez. 

Gen.  Sir  Thomas  de  Sausmarez, 

Gen.  Sir  George  Smith. 

Charles  de  Jersey,  Jurist,  and  Procureur  du  Roi. 

Henry  Tupper,  Jurist  and  Liberal  Statesmen. 


FINIS. 


THE  AMERICAN  CRISIS. 


WORKS  BY  THE  SAME  AUTHOR. 


"THE  AMERICAN  CRISIS. 

OR    PAGES  FROM  THE  NOTE  BOOK  OF    A  (FOREIGN)  STATE   AGENT 

DURING  THE  CIVIL  WAR." 

BY 

John  Lewis  Peyton, 

Bachelor  of  Law,  University  of  Virginia,  Corresponding  member 

of  the  Virginia   and  Wisconsin    Historical  Societies,   Fellow  of 

the  Royal  Geographical  Society,  London,  etc.,  etc.,  in  two  vols. 

8  vo.,  London,  1866,  Saunders,  Otley  &  Co.,  Brooke  St.  West. 

notices    of   THE    PRESS. 

"Here  we  pause  reluctantly  ;  the  extreme  interest  we  take  in 
the  political  portion  of  Col.  Peyton's  most  valuable  and  instructive 
work,  has  induced  us  to  discuss  somewhat  at  large  what  we  may 
venture  to  entitle  'Sentiments  proper  to  the  present  Crisis,'  and 
that  with  reference  as  well  to  England  as  to  ""America.  It  is  not, 
however,  to  the  statesman  or  historian  alone  that  these  volumes 
will  be  interesting.  Their  author  has  mingled  largely  in  the  best 
society  on  either  side  of  the  Atlantic  ;  public  and  private  life  in 
both  hemispheres,  with  their  leading  warriors,  orators,  statesmen, 
artists  and  men  of  letters,  have  come  as  a  matter  of  course  under 
his  notice,  and  are  sketched  ably  by  his  graphic  pen  ; — he  is  in 
turn  a  Hogarth  and  a  Watteau,  as  eccentricities  and  absurdities, 
graces  and  amenities  are  to  be  delineated.  Nor  is  graver  informa- 
tion wanting ;  his  work  is  replete  with  historical  anecdotes,  valua- 
ble statistics  and  sound  and  apposite  reflections  upon  subjects  of 
contemporary  or  social  interest." — British  Press. 

"We  have  seen  no  work  upon  the  American  Civil  War,  more 
entertaining  and  thoroughly  readable  than  that  by  Colonel  Pey- 
ton, the  style  of  which  is  terse  and  vigorous." — London  Cosmo- 
politan. 

"Some  of  the  most  interesting  portions  of  these  charming  vol- 
umes contain  a  summary  of  Col.  Peyton's  experiences,  as  well  in 
the  political,  as  in  the  literary  worlds.  His  sketches  are  graphic,  and 
beyond  all  controversy,  life-like.  We  commend  these  volumes 
cordially  and  conscientiously  to  perusal,  and  we  err  if  their  circu- 
lation be  not  extensive.  Their  author  was,  we  believe,  some  two 
or  three  years  ago,  resident  for  a  little  while  amongst  us,  and  has 
since  been  for  a  longer  season  domesticated  in  Jersey.     It   is   not 


"  THE  AMERICAN  CRISIS. 

improbable  that  he  may,  erelong-,  once  more  be  a  visitor  to  the 
Channel  Islands,  and  in  that  case  we  are  sure  that  we  may  prom- 
ise him  for  ourselves,  and  equally  confident  that  we  may  prognos- 
ticate for  him  from  our  neighbors,  a  very  hearty  welcome.  What 
Sidney  Smith  called  'stress  of  politics,'  has  driven  many  an  hon- 
ored exile  for  freedom  or  for  conscience  sake,  upon  our  shores, 
but  surely  none  more  worthy  of  our  esteem  than  this  intelligent 
and  gallant  gentleman  of  whom — his  enemies  themselves  being 
judges — the  very  worst  that  can  be  said  must  be  'Victrix  causa 
Dies  placuit,  victa  ?Qy\.om.''''— Guernsey  Star. 

Colonel  Peyton's  book  is  a  half  narrative  of  his  reminiscences 
of  the  Great  Civil  War,  or  rather  of  his  personal  intercourse  with 
the  chief  actors,  both  military  and  political,  and  half  a  description 
of  his  experiences  in  England  and  his  impressions  of  English  so- 
ciety. He  exhibits  considerable  skill  in  blending  his  adverse  feel- 
ing towards  Jefferson  Davis  (wjiom  he  regards  as  a  commonplace 
politician  and  not  a  genius  at  all)  with  the  necessary  amount  of, 
attachment  for  the  Confederate  cause.  Some  of  the  chapters  which 
he  devotes  to  his  personal  observations  while  in  this  country,  will 
be  read  with  interest,  and  portions  of  them  with  amusement.  Of 
course  he  does  not  like  Mr.  Cobden  or  Mr.  Bright.  Of  Lord 
Russell's  appearance  and  manner  he  speaks  with  contempt  which 
is  not  wholly  unmerited,  but  ill-becomes  a  panegyrist  of  Mr.  Al- 
exander Stephens,  of  whose  outer  man,  he  has  given  the  most  un- 
flattering of  descriptions.  But  he  is  at  all  events  impartial  in  his 
satirical  judgments.  When  he  presents  what  is  on  the  whole  a  very 
uncomplimentary  portrait  of  Mr.  Roebuck,  he  is  perhaps  mort 
true  to  life,  but  he  makes  a  poor  return  for  much  zealous  service. 
— London  Daily  Star . 

**This  subject  is  unrivalled  in  importance  to  Americans,  and  .. 
very  arduous  one  with  which  to  deal;  the  interests  involved  are  so 
manifold,  and  the  questions  connected  with  it  are  so  complicated 
that  it  requires  a  master  mind  to  do  them  justice.  Col.  Peyton  ha- 
taken  very  elevated  views  of  all  these  great  questions.  We  have 
rarely  met  with  a  writer  who  combines  so  much  impressive  earn- 
estness with  so  much  sound  sense  and  masculine  depth  of  thought." 
—  London   Gazette. 

"The  American  Crisis  is  a  work  of  great  interest,  written   in    ; 
most  spirited  and  masterly  style." —  Thanet  Advertiser.  (England. 

"The  American  Crisis  is  a  highly  entertaining  work,  and  one  in 
which  the  reader's  interest  will  seldom  or  ever  flag.  Many  of  the 
sketches  are  hit  off  with  much  skill  and  effect." — Herald. 

"The  earlier  portions  of  Colonel  Peyton's  work  draws  a   lively 


THE  AMERICAN  CRISIS.  HI 

picture  ol  the  feelings  which  prevailed  in  the  South,  and  especially 
in  Virginia,  during  the  first  month  of  the  war.  The  sanguine  ad- 
vocates of  Secession  were  full  of  hope  and  animation,  predicting  a 
speedy  triumph  for  their  cause,  which  should  force  iVIassachusetts 
itself  to  return  all  fugitive  slaves,  and  place  the  prosperity  of  New 
England  at  the  mercy  of  the  Southern  Confederacy. 

Colonel  Peyton's  second  volume  is  devoted,  for  the  most  part, 
to  life  in  England.  He  gives  us  particulars  about  Hotels  and 
Lodging-houses,  describes  our  railway  management  and  railway 
carriages  ;  sketches  some  of  our  great  men  ;  tells  us  about  our 
dinners,  our  evening  parties,  our  country  houses^  and  our  manner 
of  living  in  them  ;  in  point  of  fact,  is  communicative  to  English- 
men; and  the  other,  on  England,  for  the  use  of  Americans.  But 
we  can  imagine  many  reasons  which  may  have  made  it  more  con- 
venient to  treat  together  the  two  countries  which  have  been  con- 
nected by  his  own  experience.  He  is  not  at  all  a  fatiguing  writer 
to  follow  ;  we  may  read  with  tolerable  care  what  he  has  to  tell  us 
about  America,  and  may  then  proceed  with  undiminished  energy 
to  glance  at  his  remarks  on  a  subject  which,  after  all,  has  an  inter- 
est for  most  of  us — ourselves." — The  Guardian. 

"Full  of  spirited  sketches  and  interesting  descriptions." — The 
Month.     English  Magazine  of  the  Catholics. 

"The  work  contains  some  admirable  sketches  of  distinguished 
Southern  leaders,  among  them.  President  Davis,  Secretary  of 
State,  Hunter ;  Sec'ys  of  Navy  and  War,  Mallory  and  Benjamin ; 
Gen's  Lee,  Johnston,  Presston,  and  others,  and  of  such  Federalists 
as  President  Lincoln,  V.  P.  Johnson,  Gen.  B.  F.  Butler,  Parson 
Brownlow,  etc.  They  are  original  and  striking  in  style,  showing 
very  great  discrimination  and  acuteness." —  The  Standard. 

"It  is  curious  to  see  with  what  contempt  this  gendeman  of  high 
birth  and  solid  position,  looks  down  on  the  mushroom  leaders  of 
Secession.  Most  of  these  men  are  sketched  by  Colonel  Peyton  in 
sharp  and  biting  acid." — Hepworth  Dixon,  in  the  London  Athe- 
nceum. 

"These  volumes  are  compiled  from  notes  of  the  author,  who 
was  an  agent  in  Europe  from  one  of  the  late  Confederate  States. 
The  incidents  commence  from  the  outbreak  of  the  war  and  there 
are  numerous  authentic  facts  and  data  given,  which  will  throw 
light  upon  many  circumstances  connected  with  the  long  struggle 
between  the  Northern  and  Southern  States.  The  description  of 
scenes  visited,  the  reflections  on  social  subjects  and  the  statements 
connected  with  the  secret  history  of  the  war,  acquired  by  the 
author  in  his  official  capacity,  are  of  the  highest  interest  and  im- 
portance."—  The  London  Sunday  Observer. 


IV  THE  AMERICAN  CRISIS. 

"The  American  Crisis  rises  to  the  rank  of  a  voluminous  State 
paper.  Colonel  Peyton's  work  is  destined,  we  believe,  to  be  the  text 
book  for  posterity,  as  far  as  regards  the  political  questions  opened 
up  by  this  Civil  war,  the  most  gija^antic  conflict  the  world  has  ever 
witnessed.  The  author  g;ives  very  spirited  sketches  of  the  prepa- 
rations for  the  fight,  and  the  interest  taken  in  them  by  the  veterans 
of  the  South.  Throughout  he  proves  his  sound  common  sense 
and  perfect  mastery  over  the  difficult  science  of  political  economy. 
Colonel  Peyton  has  told  the  history  of  the  American  Civil  war,  its 
commencement,  progress,  and  ultimate  close,  with  precision,  and 
with  considerable  historic  care.  He  has  woven  with  the  main 
thread  of  his  story,  too,  so  many  strands  of  minor  interest,  so  ma 
ny  sketches,  and  so  many  glances  at  English  and  American  d' 
mcstic  and  country  life,  that  each  succeeding  year  cannot  fail  to 
add  to  its  value  as  a  photograph  of  its  own  times.'' --/ersey  Express. 

"The  book  impresses  us  like  the  animated  conversation  of  an 
intelligent  and  philosophic  traveler,  a  man  of  cosmopolitan  tastes 
and  catholic  views,  not  writing  so  much  as  talking  of  that  he  has 
observed  and  very  entertainingly  and  instructively." —  T/ie  Month- 
ly Journal. 

"This  sprightly,  chatty,  interesting  volume,  from  the  facile  pen 
of  Colonel  Peyton,  shows  how  an  exiled  Virginian  is  spending  his 
time  abroad  in  contributing  to  a  better  knowledge  of  our  people 
and  country  among  the  English,  while  he  furnishes  delightful 
reading  to  countrymen  at  home.  The  free,  easy,  offhand  style  of 
the  volume,  cannot  fail  to  entice  the  reader  to  the  end  of  the  work, 
while  it  gives  him  glimpses  "behind  the  scenes,"  which  will  often 
amuse,  sometimes  startle,  and  occasionally  provoke  him." —  The 
Richmond  (  Va.)  Whig. 

"In  these  two  handsome  volumes  the  author  presents  a  candid, 
interesting,  and  valuable  series  of  sketches  of  men,  events,  etc.,  at 
the  commencement  of  the  war  of  1861.  He  enters,  in  the  first 
chapter  of  his  work,  at  considerable  length  into  the  question,  not 
so  much  of  the  right  of  secession  as  of  its  feasibility  and  desirabil- 
ity at  that  time.  Upon  these  points  there  will  always  exist  many 
modifications  of  opinion  even  in  the  South,  and  it  is  only 
necessary  to  say  here  that,  accepting  a  mission  from  North  Caro- 
lina as  State  agent  in  the  interest  of  the  Confederacy,  the  auth(»r 
proceeded  through  the  blockade  of  Charleston,  S.  C,  in  the  C.  S., 
man  of  war,  Nashville,  to  England,  stopping  on  his  way  at  the 
Bermudas,  and  in  London  found  himself  thrown  in  familiar  con- 
tact with  other  Southern  Commissioners,  and  English  sympathiz- 
ers of  rank  and  influence.  The  reader  will  find  the  work  very 
entertaining.  The  views  and  comments  of  Col.  Peyton  are  those  of  a 


THE  AMERICAN  CRISIS.  V 

liberal  minded  traveler,  cosmopofitan  in  taste,  with  a  quick  eye 
for  the  characteristic,  the  humorous,  and  the  picturesque.  We 
repeat  what  we  said  in  the  beginning  of  this  paper,  that  Col.  Pey- 
ton's style  is  direct,  lucid,  unassuming,  and  at  all  times  full  of  sim- 
plicity and  ease.  He  observes  keenly  and  narrates  incidents  and 
adventures  as  he  describes  character,  with  the  art  of  the  raconUur 
and  succeeds  in  rivetting  the  attention." — ^Jno.  Esten  Cook  in  The 
Southern  Review,  Baltimore. 


VI  THE  ADVENTURES  OF  MY  GRANDFATHER. 


THE  ADVENTURES  OF  MY   GRANDFATHER, 

By  John  Lewis  Peyton,  L.  B.,  F.  B.  G.  S.,  &c., 

Author  of  "The  American  Crisis;"  A  Historical  and  Statistical 
View  of  the  State  of  lUinois,  etc.,  etc.  In  One  Volume,  demi. 
8vo.     Price,  i6s. 


notices  of  the  press. 

"A  very  interesting  and  remarkable  work." — Sir  Bernard 
Burke. 

"We  have  rarely  risen  from  the  perusal  of  any  work  with 
greater  satisfaction.  It  is  an  interesting  and  elegantly  written 
volume." —  Weymouth  Paper. 

"Le  livre  est  'ecrit  de  main  de  maitre.  La  biographic  et  les 
laisons  qui  tiennent  les  lettres,  sont  d'un  style  parfait,  et,  en 
somne,  le  livre  est  des  plus  interessant." — Gazette  de  Guernsey. 

"The  adventures  are  in  themselves  as  fully  fraught  with  interest 
as  those  of  Robinson  Crusoe,  or  the  pioneers  who  first  penetrated 
into  the  far  West,  and  had  to  combat  with  the  terrors  of  the 
Rocky  mountains,  or  the  hostilities  of  the  red  Indians.  His 
agreeable  volume  will  give  him  an  additional  claim  to  the  esteem 
which  has  been  already,  and  so  deservedly,  accorded  to  his  char- 
acter and  talents  by  all  classes  of  our  society." — Guernsey  Star. 

"We  again  heartily  commend  this  volume  to  the  attention  of 
the  reading  public  who  will,  we  are  sure,  heartily  join  us  in  thank- 
ing its  enlightened  and  accomplished  author  for  the  literary  treat 
which  he  has  afforded  them." — British  Press. 

"He  has  produced  a  very  able  and  graphic  biography.  It 
possesses  all  the  qualities  necessary  to  become  popular,  and  there 
is  nothing  to  hinder  the  work  from  having  an  extensive  run." — 
Mail  and  Telegraph, 

John  Wilson,  Publisher,  93  Great  Russet  Street,  London,  W. 
C,  England. 


OVER  THE  ALLEGHANIES  AND  ACROSS  THE  PRAIRIES. 


By  the  same  author. 
OVER  THE    ALLEGHANIES  AND  ACROSS  THE 
PRAIRIES. 
Personal  Recollections  of  the  far  West,  one  and  twen- 
T,Y  years  ago. 
Simpkin  Marshall  &  Co.,  Stationers  Hall  Court,  London,  Eng- 
land, 1870,  I.  Vol.  8vo. 

notices  of  the  press. 

''Colonel  Peyton,  who  is  favorably  known  to  the  British  public 
by  his  previous  works,  is  an  intelligent  and  observant  'traveler, 
who  tells  well  what  he  has  seen,  so  that  his  narrative  makes  a  vol- 
ume of  very  pleasant  reading." — Notes  mid  Queries,  London.    . 

"The  production  of  a  scholar  and  a  gentleman.  We  can  but  re- 
commend our  readers  to  possess  themselves  of  it.  assured  that 
they  will  find  that  they  have  secured  a  fund  of  pleasant  reading." 
— London  United  Service  Magazine.. 

"The  reminiscences  are  very  interesting  and  give  an  excellent  and 
truthful  idea  of  the  North  American  Indians,  their  mode  of  life 
and  warfare." —  The  Athencezim,  London. 

"Colonel  Peyton's  work  is  of  historic  value,  and  we  heartily  com- 
mend it  to  all." —  The  London  Review. 

"Full  of  personal  reminiscences  of  an  interesting  character.   Some 
of  the  episodes  are  full  of  the  romance  of  real  life.     He  shows  him- 
self to  have  been  a  keen  observer." — Public  Opinion,  London. 
— "Colonel  Peyton's  work  is  agreeably  written." — The  Guardian, 
London. 

"His  chapters  are  fraught  with  a  fresher  interest  than  we  get  in 
these  days  of  railway  and  fast  traveling." — Low's  Publishers  Cir- 
cular, London. 

"This  volume  written  in  a  very  lively  and  entertaining  style  has 
more  claims  upon  readers'  attention,  than  a  glance  at  the  title  might 
lead  one  to  suppose." — Illustrated  London  News. 

"As  a  useful  and  reliable  companion,  few  can  compare  in  inter- 
est with  Colonel  Peyton,  whose  agreeable  volume  we  have  read 
with  much  pleasure." —  The  Weekly  Times,  London. 

"We  commend  this  volume  of  stirring  stories  to  the  lovers  of 
adventure." — Lloyd's  Weekly,  London. 


Vlll  OVER  THE  ALLEGHANIES  AND  ACROSS  THE  PRAIRIES. 

"An  exceedingly  interesting  volume,  abounding  in  pleasant 
reminiscences,  by  the  well  known  Colonel  Peyton,  son  of  Senator 
John  Howe  Peyton  of  Virginia.  Colonel  Peyton  is  author  of  two 
other  very  clever  works  well  known  in  England,  "  The  Ainer^'can 
Crisis''  '*  The  Adventures  of  My  Grand-Father^  To  English- 
men the  work  will  prove  more  interesting  than  fiction,  and  Amer- 
ic  ins  will  find  it  a  living  history  of  their  own  day  and  generation." 
The  Cosmopolitan,  London. 

"A  pleasant,  amusing,  and  charming  volume." — Norwood 
News,  London. 

*'A  sprightly,  chatty,  interesting  volume." — Richmotid  (  Va.') 
Wnijs^. 

"An  interesting  contribution  to  the  history  of  the  recent  past 
in  the  rapidly  developing  regions  of  the  West  and  North  West." 
—  The  C^2^r/fr,  (Georgetown,  District    of  Columbia.) 

"Books  that  illustrate  the  rapid  growth  of  the  great  empire  of 
the  United  States  are  always  interesting,  and  that  is  done  by  both 
of  the  volumes  before  us  (Colonel  Peyton's)  and  Parker  Gilmore's 
"A  hunters  adventures  in  the  great  West."  Mr.  Gilmore's  work, 
however,  is  far  less  valuable  than  Colonel  Peyton's.  His  book  is 
amusing  as  well  as  instructive,  &c." — The  Examiner,  London. 

"Many  pages  might  be  called  illustrative  of  Col.  Peyton's  genial, 
descriptive  style  and  great  native  abilities." — Guernsey  Cornet. 

"Col.  Peyton  is  a  most  desirable  traveling  companion,  he  is 
genial  and  good  natured,  and  sees  the  bright  side  of  everything, 
as  well  as  the  dark,  and  thinks  it  best  to  make  the  most  of  the  for- 
mer. *  *  The  book  is  exceedingly  entertaining,  and  the  easy, 
friendly  style  in  which  it  is  written,  will  engage  the  attention  from 
the  first  page  to  the  last." — The  News  of  the  World,  London. 

"In  description,  whether  of  scenery  or  incidents.  Col.  Peyton's 
pen  is  graphic  and  his  narrative  is  characterized  by  an  easy,  nat- 
ural flowing  style,  combined  with  elegance  of  diction," — The  Tele- 
graph, London. 

"Indeed  the  book  whether  taken  up  for  mere  amusement  or 
studied  for  solid  instruction,  is  one  that  must  commend  itself  to  all 
classes  of  readers." —  The  Guernsey  Star. 

"We  are  very  much  pleased  to  observe  that  the  author,  if  not 
a  Catholic,  is  at  all  events  above  the  narrow  minded  prejudices  of 
most  Protestant  writers." —  The  Mo7ith,  of  London. 

"His  book  abounds  in  lively  sketches  of  the  rough,  manly  tem- 
per of  the  western  Americans,  different  alike  from  the  unhealthy 
activity  of  the  Northerners,  and  the  comparative  indolence  of  the 


OVER  THE  ALLEGHANIES  AND  ACROSS  THE  PRAIRIES.  IX 

Southerners.  He  is  not  tender  with  their  weaknesses  —weaknesses 
which,  in  a  paragraph  of  his  preface,  he  shows  to  be  really  ele- 
Oients  of  strength.  *The  wonderful  growth  of  the  United  States 
in  their  western  territories,'  etc.,  The  book  is  of  historic  value. — 
The  Review,  London. 

"To  Americans,  this  book  is  of  great  historical  value  for  its  rem- 
iniscences of  celebrated  men  and  newly  born  cities,  while  the  gen- 
eral reader  will  find  in  its  pages  much  new  information.  We  have 
no  doubt  that  an  American  edition  would  be  received  with  great 
favor. "  —  Canadia n  News. 

Hauteville   House,  Guernsey,  2d  Jan.  1870. 

Mon  Cher  Colonel  : — ^J'ai  lu  avec  le  plus  vif  interet  votre  excel- 
lent ouvrage.  Vous  m'exprimez,  sur  le  primierie  page,  des  senti- 
ments qui  me  tonchent  vivement.  Je  suis  votre  concrtoyen  en 
liberte  et  en  humanite. 

L'abolition  de  I'esclavage  a  rendu  I'Amerique  a  elle-meme; 
d'esormais  il  n'y  a  plus  ni  nord,  ni  sud ;  il  y-a  la  Grande  Repub- 
lique.    J'ep  suis  comme  vous. 

Recevez,  Colonel,  mon  cordial  shake  (of  the)  hand. 

To  Colonel  John  Lewis  Peyton.  Victor  Hugo. 

"That  these  works  possess  unusual  merits,  we  feel  safe  in  assert- 
ing. One  merit — it  is  not  in  our  eyes  a  slight  one — is  that  Col. 
Peyton  everywhere  writes  like  a  gentleman.  The  age  we  live  in 
has  carried  its  'fast'  and  'slap  dash'  propensities  into  literature. 
Repose,  simplicity,  and  that  charming  unreserve  which  charac- 
terizes the  well-bred  author,  as  it  characterizes  the  well-bred  gen- 
tleman writing  for  persons  of  culture  and  intelligence  is  his.  His  de- 
scriptions and  comments  possess  great  directness  and  picturesque- 
ness,  mingled  with  a  natural  and  agreeable  humor ;  and  render 
his  volumes  extremely  agreeable  reading.  *  *  The  works 
would  prove  highly  successful,  we  think,  if  republished  in  Amer- 
ica." John  Esten  Cooke, 

(In  the  Southern  Review.) 


(^S') 


HISTORY  OF  AUGUSTA  COUNiY. 


HISTORY  OF  AUGUSTA  COUNTY,  VIRGINIA. 
By  J.  Lewis  Peyton. 

Anther  of  "The  American  Crisis,"  "Over  the  Alleghanies,"  "A 
Statistical  View  of  the  State  of  Illinois,"  etc.,  etc. 


Extracts  from  some  of  the  notices  of  the  press,  etc. : 

From  the  Lynchburg  (Va.)  Daily  News. 
"It  is  a  work  of  immense  labor  and  research  and  embodies 
many  facts  and  documents  of  great  value  to  the  future  historian 
of  Virginia.  Written  in  an  easy,  flowing,  scholarly  style,  it  every 
where  indicates  the  high  cultivation  of  its  distinguished  author. 
He  may  well  be  proud  of  his  work,  and  trust  it  to  carry  his  name 
and  fame  down  to  a  remote  posterity." 

From  the  Norfolk  Virginian. 

"This  is  an  able  record  of  the  great  county  which  once  em- 
braced the  States  of  Ohio,  Indiana  and  Illinois.  It  is  character- 
ized by  the  most  careful  and  intelligent  research,  and  possesses 
great  literary  and  historical  value.  Colonel  Peyton  has  done 
himself  much  honor,  and  his  State  much  service  in  the  production 
of  this  valuable  work." 

From  the  Richmond  (Va.)  State. 

"This  is  an  invaluable  addition  to  Virginia  historical  literature. 
The  field  was  fruitful,  and  the  distinguished  author  has  made 
exceptionally  good  use  of  it.  The  work  bears  evidence  of  inde- 
fatigable research,  but  the  tedium  of  a  purely  historical  narrative 
is  relieved  by  the  introduction  of  a  great  deal  of  folk-lore,  which 
is  presented  in  a  very  entertaining  style.  We  trust  this  work  is 
an  earnest  of  farther  historical  investigation  on  the  part  of  Colonel 
Peytdn." 

From  the  Virginian. 

"The  laborious  research  which  has  been  bestowed  upon  it,  the 
lucid  and  graphic  style  of  the  composition,  the  tragic  events  de- 
tailed of  border  warfare,  and  the  vast  fund  of  historical  informa- 
tion it  contains,  will  command  for  the  book  a  warm  reception 
from  the  public." 

From. the  Saturday  Review,  London.    England. 

"It  is  an  able  and  elaborate  work.  It  is,  of  course,  in  great  part 
a  history  of  Virginia,  especially  in  her  earlier  position  as  a  British 


HISTORY  OF  AUGUSTA  COUNTY.  XI 

Colony  ;  but  contains,  also,  many  geographical,  historical  and  bi- 
ographical details  of  purely  local  interest.  That  part  of  the  nar- 
rative which  relates  to  the  civil  war  deserves  a  special  word  of 
commendation,  as  illustrating  forcibly  both  the  thorough  loyalty  to 
the  Confederacy  of  the  men  who  protested  most  earnestly  against 
secession  and  the  cruelties  perpetrated  by  Sheridan  and  the  other 
federal  commanders^  Northern  sympathizers  would  do  well  to 
study  at  least  one  such  work  as  Colonel  Peyton's  before  they 
again  refer  to  the  treatment  of  the  southern  rebels  as  an  example 
of  democratic  lenity." 

From  the  Atlantic  Monthly,   Boston,  Mass. 

•'The  History  of  Augusta  County,  Va.,  by  Col.  J.  Lewis  Peyton, 
is  a  substantial  county  history,  in  which  Is  gathered  much  local 
material.  Many  curious  details  are  preserved  in  it,  and  the  work 
will  take  its  place  as  one  of  the  storehouses  for  the  future  histo- 
rian." 

From  the  Staunton  Vindicator. 

"It  is  one  of  the  most  popular  as  it  is  one  of  the  most  readable 
works  of  the  day." 

From  the  Rockbridge  Enterprise. 

"Colonel  Peyton's  previous  works  had  well  prepared  him  for 
this  one — works  which  have  given  him  an  English  as  well  as  an 
American  reputation.  In  point  of  polish  and  elegance  of  style,  of 
fullness  and  minuteness  of  detail,  and  in  glowing  interest,  it  ranks 
with  the  best  books  of  this  country.  It  is  a  sound,  instructive  his- 
tory, with  the  charm  of  one  of  the  Indian  romances  of  Fenimore 
Cooper.  Every  public  and  private  library  in  the  State  should 
have  a  copy." 

From  the  Augusta  Democrat. 

"While  the  author  modestly  calls  it  a  history   of  the   county,  it 
has  no  small  claims  to  be  called  a  'History  of  the  State,'  so  care- 
fully has  he  traced  all  the  great  events  of  the  early   and  later  days 
of  the  Republic  with  which  Augusta  had  any  connection," 
From  the  Farmville  (Va.)  Journal. 

"Colonel  Peyton,  the  author,  is  the  son  of  the  Hon.  John  Howe 
Peyton,  one  of  Virginia's  most  eminent  lawyers,  and  is  a  man  of 
fine  literary  taste  and  extensive  scholarly  attainments,  a  practised, 
forcible  and  elegant  writer.  These  qualifications  embodied  with 
an  ardent  affection  for  his  native  county  and  a  laudable  feeling  of 
ancestral  pride,  being  a  descendant  of  the  Lewis  family  so 
greatly  distinguished  in  the  early  history  of  Virginia,  make  him 
eminently  fitted  for  the  task  he  has  undertaken  and  so  admirably 
accon^plished." 


Xll  HISTORY  OF  AUGUSTA  COUNTY. 

From  the  Alleghany  (Pa  )Tribune, 
'•From  Colonel  Peyton's  acknowledged  ability  and  learning  the 
book  must  prove  a  valuable  edition  to  the  history  of  Virginia." 
From  the  Lynchburg  Virginian. 
"Colonel  J.  L.  Peyton's  History  of  Augusta  is  a  work  of  great 
interest  and  value,  especially  to  the  people   of  Virginia.     It   con- 
tains the  history  of  Augusta  from  its  first  settlement  by  Europeans, 
down     to  the  present  time — a  county  once   extending    from    the 
Blue  Ridge  to  the  Mississippi.     Jt  deals  with  the  Indian  tribes,  their 
habits  and  customs,  and  contains  sketches  of  Augusta's  most    dis- 
tinguished sons." 

From  the  Philadelphia  Press, 

"It  is  a  valuable  history  of  Augusta  county,  but  there  is   much 
in  it  to  interest  and  instruct  the  general  reader." 
From  the  Richmond  Dispatch. 

"This  is  an  interesting  book,  and  gives  not  only  a  history  of  the 
formation  of  Augusta  county,  but  all  sorts  of  valuable  information 
concerning  it.     It  is  an  essential  contribution   to  Virgmia's   history 
and  is  characterized  by  careful  research  and  fullness  of  detail. 
From  the  New  York  Publishers'  Weekly. 

"The  work  will  be  found  full  of  interest  and  valuable  information." 
From  the  Highland  Recorder. 

"This  is  a  complete  history  of  the  great  county  of  Augusta,  and 
abounds  in  valuable  information  not  to  be  found  in  any  other  work. 
Colonel  Peyton's  style  is  incisive,  clear  and  vigorous,  and  the  work 
written  with  great  minuteness  of  detail." 

From  the  Los  Angelos  Herald. 

"The  glowing  narrative  will  deeply  interest  the  general  reader 
and  will  be  flascinating  in  the  extreme  to  every  Virginian.  Their 
blood  has  flowed  in  the  veins  of  many  Californians,  among  them 
the  silver-tongued  orator,  Balie  Peyton,  and  the  eminent  lawyers, 
Baldwin,  Marshall  and   Weller." 

From  the  Greenbrier  Independent 

"The 'History  of  Augusta  County'  is  deeply  interesting,  and 
ought  to  have  a  wide  circulation." 

From  the  Virginias. 

"Colonel  Peyton  combines  the  qualifications  of  the  laborious 
student  and  the  finished  scholar.  A  native  of  the  county,  a  de- 
scendant of  the  heroic  founder,  Col.  John  Lewis,  an  ardent  student 
and  lover  of  local  annals,  experienced  as  an  author  and  trained  by 
extensive  travels  to  observe  men  and  manners,  Colonel  Peyton  is 
peculiarly  fitted  for  the  task  of  writing  the  history  of  this  grand 
county." 


HISTORY  OF  AUGUSTA  COUNTY.  Xlll 

From  the  Staunton  Spectator. 

"In  point  of  historic  information,  conveyed  in  clear,  graceful  and 
classic  language,  it  is  one  of  the  most  valuable  and  readable  works 
of  the  times.  The  distinguished  author  has  been  imbued  with  the 
laudable  and  noble  purpose  of  embodying  in  recorded  form  the 
historical  and  legendary  learning  he  has  amassed.  The  work  will 
captivate  old  and  young.  It  should  be  a  text  book  in  the  schools 
and  colleges  of  the  State." 

From  the  Valley  Virginian. 

'Tt  abounds  in  glow.ing  descriptions  of  nature,  profound 
thoughts  and  lofty  sentiments,  the  style  everywhere  being  charac- 
terized by  warmth  and  animation.  This  excellent  work,  with  Col. 
Peyton's  previous  contributions  to  our  literature,  justly  entitle  him 
to  take  rank  with  the  great  Virginians  who  have  conferred  honor 
on  their  native  land  by  their  splendid  and  commanding  talents." 
From  the    Watchman,  Richmond. 

'Tt  is  a  book  of  rare  interest  from  the  distinguished  Virginian, 
Colonel  J.  Lewis  Peyton,  and  contains  a  fund  of  historical,  geo- 
graphical and  biographical  information." 

From  the  Richmond  Whig, 

The  book  displays  great  ability,  laborious  research  and  is  writ 
ten  in  a  vigorous  and  elegant  style." 

From  the  Industrial  South,  Richmond. 

'Tt  is  a  work  of  wide  spread  interest  and  permanent  historic 
value." 

From  the  Christian   Observer,    [Louisville.] 

"The  work  is  of  special  interest,  and  is  a  valuable  addition  to  the 
history  of  Virginia." 

Judge  R.  W.  Hughes,  United  States  District  Judge.,  says  :  "I 
have  read  your  history  of  Augusta  with  deep  interest.  It  contains 
a  great  deal  not  elsewhere  to  be  found,  and  you  have  entitled  your- 
self to  the  public  gratitude  by  rescuing  from  oblivion  and  embody- 
ing in  enduring  form  historical  treasures  which  ought  not  to  have 
been  left  to  perish." 

Hon.  Robert  W.  Withers,  late  United  States  Senator,  says : 
"I  have  read  your  .\l]e  and  elaborate  work  with  deep  interest.  It 
will  take  its  place  among  the  standard  histories  of  the  country." 

Prof.  George  F.  Holmes,  of  the  University  ofVirginia,  says  : 
*'It  is  an  able  and  exhaustive  record  of  the  history  of  the  coun- 
ty." 

Prof.  J.  B.  Minor,  of  the  University  ofVirginia,  says  :  "It  is 
a  most  able  and  interesting    work   upon  your  county — a   county 


XIV  HISTORY  OF  AUGUSTA  COUNTY. 

famous  for  the  important  part  it  took  in  the  early  history  of  the 
State,  for  its  superior  population  and  in  the -past  hundred  years 
for  its  great  and  virtuous  lawyers.  The  work  displays  great  in- 
dustry and  acuteness." 

Prof.  Schele  de  Vere,  University  of  Virginia,  says:  "I  have 
delayed  acknowledging  the  receipt  of  your 'History  of  Augusta 
County,'  that  I  might  read  it  before  doing  so.  Its  perusal  has  af- 
forded me  much  pleasure  and  instruction.  The  interest  of  the 
narrative  is  absorbing.  I  congratulate  you  on  your  success.  It  is 
a  model  work  of  its  kind." 

Rev.  Moncure  D.  Conway,  of  London,  England,  says :  "It 
is  written  with  great  care  and  is  a  most  interesting  and  valuable 
work." 

Hon.  Robert  C.  Winthrop,  of  Boston,  Mass.,  says  ;  "I 
thank  you  warmly  for  the  opportunity  you  havegiven  me  of  read- 
ing your  really  valuable  history  of  Augusta  county." 

John  Esten  Cooke,  says:  "You  have  written  what  seems  to 
me  not  only  a  most  interiesting,  but  also  a  most  valuable  book  I 
have  recently  been  re-reading  your  excellent  'American  Crisis,' 
and  think  it  your  most  attractive  work.  You  should  employ  your 
leisure,  I  think,  in  adding  to  these  life-like  sketches,  which  I  think 
you  have  the  art  to  make  more  interesting  than  any  other  author 
of  the  time." 

Dr.  Francis  Galton,  L.  L.  D.,  of  London.  England,  author 
of  Hereditary  Genivs,  says  :  "There  seems  much  in  the  book  ot 
interest.  You  say,  p.  307,  in  respect  to  the  Preston  family,  "that 
it  is  not  improbable  there  are  hundreds  of  grand  and  great  grand 
children  who  will  sustain  the  character  of  this  great  American 
family  for  brains,  bravery  and  beauty.'  Why  not  work  out  the 
family  to  show  first,  2nd  and  3rd  ?"  &c.,  &c. 

"Had  I  possessed  the  volume  in  time.  I  would  have  used  parts 
of  its  investigations  in  my  vol.  I.  of  American  Literature.  The 
town  meeting,  the  starting  point  of  civilization,  was  a  good  but  not 
perfect  thing ;  and  so,  it  seems  to  me,  the  manor  house  you  so 
eloquently  describe,  was  a  good  but  not  a  perfect  thing.  North- 
erners cannot  comprehend  the  strength  and  the  meaning  of  Vir- 
ginia's noble  history  until  they  study  the  causes  of  the  develop- 
ment of  her  families," — Prof.  Chas.  F.  Richardson,  writing  to  the 
author. 

"Such  county  histories  are  of  very  high  value  now,  and  in  the 
future  will  be  well  nigh  priceless,     *     *     to  all    who  love    their 


HISTORY  OF  AUGUSTA  COUNTY.  XV 

country.  Virginia  is  the  nurse  of  heroes," — Theodore  W.  Dwight, 
Pres't.  of  Columbia  College  Law  School,  N.  Y. 

"I  assure  you  that  I  have  read  your  history  of  Augusta  Co.  Va., 

with  much  pleasure  and  profit.     I  have  always  had  a  fondness  for 

local  history  of  that  sort,  for  in  them   we  get  a  fineness  of  detail, 

and  a  local  coloring  that  are  lost  in  more  pretentious  books." — H. 

W.   Grady,  Editor  of  Atlanta  Constitution. 

*'It  is  a  most  interesting  and  admirably  executed  work,  and 
apart  from  its  historical  worth,  can  hardly  fail  to  have  a  con  uder- 
able  influence  on  both  sides  of  the  Atlantic  in  the  chain  which 
binds  together  the  branches  of  the  English-speaking  raca." — 
Lloyd  Sanders,  of  London,  English  author. 

"You  have  laid  the  county  of  Augusta,  and  the  entire  State  un- 
der great  obligations,  and  fixed  your  name  upon  the  annals  of  his- 
tory. I  congratulate  you  upon  your  success,  and  hope  it  may 
stimulate  to  further  exertions  in  the  same  line." — Col.  7hos.  L. 
Presto7i,  of  Charlottesville. 

The  distinguished  author  has  received  similar  complimentary  let- 
ters from  scores  of  statesmen,  literary  men,  etc.,  in  this  country  and 
Europe,among  whom  may  be  mentioned  President  Cleveland,  Hon. 
T.  F.  Bayard,  Hon.  Geo.  Bancroft,  late  Minister  to  Prussia,  Edgar 
Fawcett,  novelist,  &c..  Prof.  T.  A.  Lounsbury,  of  Yale,  Prof. 
Young,  of  Princeton,  Prof  Swift,  of  Rochester,  N,  Y.,  Prof.  Gil- 
man,  of  John  Hopkins  University,  Prof.  Chas.  Manly,  of  Furman's 
University,  S.  C,  The  Head  Master  of  Victoria  College,  Jersey, 
Sir  Edgar  MacCulloch,  Bailiff  of  Guernsey,  Eugene  Defosse, 
Paris,  Sig  Nicolini,  Pisa, Italy. and  others  too  numerous  to  mention. 
— [Sam'l.  M.  Yost  &  Son,  Publishers,  Staunton,  Va.] 


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